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Balakrishna (Kamal Haasan), fondly called Balu, is an economically disadvantaged but multi-talented dancer, adept at the Indian classical dances of Kuchipudi, Bharatanatyam, Kathak, etc. His simple and very honest soul does not permit him to attain professional success in the commercial world that requires a certain level of moral laxness. Madhavi (Jaya Prada), a wealthy young woman and a dance patron, notices his talent and acts as his benefactress, helping him secure an opportunity to participate in a high-level classical dance festival. Balu's aging mother passes away from the afflictions of poverty two days before the performance. Balu, who was very attached to her, is emotionally devastated and fails to participate in the dance festival. Madhavi nevertheless, gives him support and encouragement and sets him on the mend. Balu gradually develops a fondness for Madhavi as their relationship grows. He hides his love for her, but eventually picks up the courage to express it. Balu discovers that, while Madhavi shares his feelings, she is a married woman separated from her husband. The husband later returns to unite Madhavi and Balu, but Balu decides to sacrifice his love showing respect for the institution of marriage. The years pass, and Balu, a disappointed man, has become an inconsolable alcoholic and a newspaper journalist/art critic. Meanwhile, Madhavi's husband dies, and she hears about Balu's condition. In a bid to revive his will to live and his passion for his art, she tends to his medical needs through his friend Raghu (Sarath Babu) and solicits Balu to be the dance master for her daughter, Sailaja (SP Sailaja). The film ends with Sailaja's stage performance with Balu watching her in a wheelchair, his health having completely deteriorated, and he dies. Raghu is seen taking him away quietly, without interrupting the performance. Madhavi follows him with an umbrella covering Balu from the rain. 

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Shivaiah (Kamal Haasan), an innocent and autistic orphan, lives along with his grandmother (Nirmalamma) in a village. In that village, Lalitha (Raadhika), a young widow with a five-year-old son, lives along with her brother Chalapati's (Sarath Babu) family. She and her son often get abused by her sister-in-law (Y. Vijaya), but Lalitha, having nowhere to go, bears it all. Shivaiah often encounters Lalitha and gets appalled by her condition. One day, during Sri Rama Navami festival, Shivaiah marries Lalitha, shocking all the villagers. His grandmother (Nirmalamma) approves of his marriage as she also has much sympathy and regard for Lalitha, but his uncle and Orthodox villagers oppose that marriage as they consider remarriage of a widow as a sin. In that brawl, Shivaiah's grandmother dies, leaving innocent Shivaiah in the hands of Lalitha. Lalitha moves in with her husband with the blessings of her brother. Some of the villagers help them to build a new life. Gradually, Lalitha makes Shivaiah understand the household duties and responsibilities of a man. Shivaiah finds work and starts to support his wife and stepson. Later they have a son and live happily for a long time. Years pass, and Lalitha becomes ill and dies in her husband's arms. In the climax, Shivaiah walks out of his house surrounded by his children and grandchildren. He carries a tulsi plant, which was his memory of Lalitha's love. 

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The film starts with a shabby old man living as a recluse near a famous temple. When he ventures out into the village, he is beaten by the shepherds who believe that he is a thief. When they hand him over to the police, the officer in charge identifies him as a once-famous musician, Anantha Rama Sharma (Mammooty), hailed as Sangeeta Samrat (Emperor of music), who has been missing for four years. The inspector RadhaKrishna (Achyuth) informs his aunt (Jayanthi), who teaches music in his native village, of this and the past of Anantha Sharma is narrated through flashback. ; Flashback begins Anantha Rama Sharma is a widely respected Carnatic singer with a big ego. This is established when he rejects the Padma Shri bestowed upon him by the Government of India, as he believes that the other awardees are not worthy to be mentioned alongside him. Gangadhar (Master Manjunath) lives in the same village. He rejects the society's norms (taking music classes and going to school) and spends his time sitting by the riverside. The river inspires him to sing many songs in different tunes. His music teacher, also the policeman's aunt, recognizes his talent and tries to nurture it. His school teacher (the music teacher's brother) is also fond of Gangadhar. Gangadhar wants to become a great singer, like Ananta Sharma, and his father (Dharmavarapu Subrahmanyam) encourages him. His day comes when Anantha Sharma is honored in an auditorium. Gangadhar sings a song ("Aanathi Neeyara") in honor of Anantha Sharma, which many consider to be much better than any of Anantha Sharma's works. The boy is hailed as a child prodigy by everyone including Anantha Sharma's wife. Anantha Sharma wants to imprison Gangadhar's talents. So he asks Gangadhar to stay in his house and learn music as one must be well-experienced to sing on stage. Anantha Sharma goes to the extent of copying one of Gangadhar's tunes and singing it on stage to win back his glory. But Gangadhar and Ananta's wife find this out. He now feels guilty and defends himself by saying that he did it as he was afraid this child would destroy his name and fame. In this emotional moment, he suffers a heart-attack. To show his gratitude towards his adopted mother, Gangadhar kills himself so that there is no competition for Anantha Sharma. The incident shocks the villagers and they call Anantha Sharma a murderer. To escape their wrath and insults, he runs away and becomes a recluse. ;Flashback ends Ananta Sharma is still unconscious while in the police station. When he awakes, he finds himself in the house of Gangadhar's music teacher. The music teacher's husband tells him that they have forgiven him and asks him to return to his house. At his house, he finds his wife giving music classes (an institute named "Gangadhar Music Academy") for young children. He sits down amongst the children learning the music basics from his wife. The movie ends with a scene when a young girl next to him chides him gently by correcting his way of singing a basic song note. 

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An ultranationalist regime takes control of the Russian government in Moscow, installing its leader Dmitri Arbatov as president. Russia then takes control over Ukraine, Belarus, and Kazakhstan, forming the Russian Democratic Union (RDU), a political and military alliance dedicated to recreating the former Soviet Union. In April 2008, the U.S. Army's elite "Ghost" soldiers battle South Ossetian separatist rebels who are harassing the Georgian government and their allies. Their presence forces the RDU to complain to the United Nations that the U.S. has interfered in their internal affairs. The Russian army invades Georgia to assist the rebels. The Ghosts slow down the Russian advance while foreign civilians are evacuated from the country. Eventually, the Ghosts are all that's left of U.S. forces in Georgia and take the last helicopter out of the U.S. embassy in Tbilisi just as Russian forces arrive. The Georgian government sets up a government-in-exile in Geneva, Switzerland while the RDU annexes Georgia, an act publicly condemned by the United States, United Kingdom, and Germany. The Ghosts are soon sent to the Baltic states in response to a Russian invasion launched three days ahead of NATO intelligence estimates. The Ghosts attempt to slow down the attack to buy time for NATO units to arrive in force, with the closest of them coming from Germany. The Ghosts fight alongside U.S. Army elements to push the Russians out of the Baltics, with victories in Rēzekne, Latvia, and Utena and Vilnius, Lithuania. The defeat takes its toll on the RDU government with President Arbatov largely blamed for the disaster and put under house arrest. The Ghosts enter Russia with their first mission being to free U.S. POWs and Russian political prisoners opposed to the RDU. The Russian military executes President Arbatov, which sparks a nationwide rebellion bordering on civil war. The ultranationalists quickly lose public support and many members of the RDU government quit the alliance. The Ghosts later attack several Russian bases such as a naval base at Murmansk and an airbase at Arkhangel'sk, weakening the ultranationalists' combat power. The RDU attracts strong international condemnation and practically dissolve after they detonate a nuclear weapon during a battle north of Moscow between the ultranationalists and a joint force of U.S. and rebelling Russian combat units. Acting Russian Prime Minister Karpin privately requests additional NATO aid in the fighting, prompting the entire 1st Armored Division to be sent over the Russian border. The Ghosts spearhead a NATO assault on Moscow by cutting through a strong ultranationalist defensive line in the woods outside the capital. On November 10, 2008, NATO forces finally reach a deserted Moscow, with the last ultranationalist defenders holed up inside the Kremlin. After a final assault by the Ghosts in Red Square, the ultranationalists surrender and both the Americans and the newly liberated Russians celebrate their victory. 

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In August 2008, the Russo-Georgian war began, with a number of commentators noting on the coincidence, that this real world event was somewhat similar to the plot of Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon.McCain, Obama Respond to Scenario Out of First Level of Ghost Recon, National Review Did A Game Predict War In Georgia? By: John Rossomando. The philadelphia Bulletin 

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The story begins with Niobe, captain of the Logos, and Ghost, her first mate, retrieving a package left in the Matrix by the crew of the recently destroyed rebel ship Osiris. After being pursued by Agents, Ghost and Niobe escape from the Matrix with the package, which turns out to be a message to the human city Zion, warning them that the machines are approaching with an army of Sentinels. Niobe and Ghost are tasked with calling the rest of the ships back to Zion to coordinate a defense. With this in mind, the captains of the various ships hold a meeting in the Matrix to decide on how best to defend themselves. During the meeting, Agents attack the building they are in, although Niobe and Ghost are able to help their allies escape. They then encounter the Keymaker, a program capable of accessing any area in the Matrix, who leads them to safety through a door he created. The Keymaker gives the two a key that they are supposed to give to Neo. However, the key is stolen by henchmen of the Merovingian, a program created during the early days of the Matrix who now operates an illegal smuggling ring within the program. Ultimately, the Merovingian destroys the key, but Niobe and Ghost are able to escape, when the Keymaker realizes that it is too early for the key to be given to Neo. Niobe later volunteers to go find the Nebuchadnezzar, the ship captained by Morpheus, upon which Neo serves, and the only ship yet to return to Zion. Upon finding the ship and its crew, and helping them escape from the Matrix, Niobe and Ghost agree to help in Neo's mission against the machines, agreeing to destroy a power plant. After this mission is completed, the Oracle, a program that often gives the humans advice, requests that the player character come and speak to her. After their conversation, the player is confronted by Agent Smith, a rogue Agent that seeks to destroy both the human and machine worlds. The player character barely escapes from the hundreds of Smith copies and the Matrix. Once out, the Logos is attacked by the machines. They defeat the machines by setting off an EMP, which disables their own ship in the process. The game ends with Niobe and Ghost waiting in the Logos, hoping that they will be rescued. The two wonder what's coming but believe that it will be "a hell of a ride." 

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The novel, set in 1983, revolves around Step Fletcher, a game programmer, who invented a fictional Atari computer game called Hacker Snack, and his family. Step, a devout Mormon, moves his pregnant wife DeAnne and their three children, including seven-year-old Stevie, from Indiana to Steuben, North Carolina so he can start a new job as a technical writer. In addition to struggles at his new job with unpleasant and immoral bosses and coworkers, the Fletchers' new house is periodically invaded by hordes of different types of insects. Bappy, the elderly father of the owner of the rented house, is always ready to lend a hand with things. Step quits his job right before DeAnne gives birth to a baby with special needs. After the move, Step's son Stevie becomes withdrawn, playing only with his imaginary friends in the garden and on his computer. They take him to a psychiatrist, who speculates that the family's religion could be causing Stevie's problems, offending Step. Step and DeAnne notice that the names of Stevie's imaginary friends are the same as the names of young boys who are disappearing. Stevie knows the boys' nicknames, which are not common knowledge. They notify the police, and a detective questions Stevie, concluding that a serial killer must exist for them to be all connected through Stevie. Step notices that the video game that Stevie uses to play with his imaginary friends has graphics that are beyond anything that could actually run on the computer and discovers that the game has no cartridge. On the 22nd of December, Bappy arrives and fits the Christmas lights for them and lingers for quite some time while DeAnn and Step take their infant to the doctor. On Christmas Eve, Stevie brings his friends into the house to introduce them to his parents and to celebrate Christmas. Stevie reveals that now that he is like them, he can make them visible to others. He explained that after confronting Bappy's connection to the missing boys, Bappy murdered him and buried his body in the underspace below the house, which also contained the graves of the other boys. Step and DeAnne bid Stevie farewell. Bappy is arrested and charged with the murder of the boys. Years later, Robbie and Betsy regard their elder brother like a legend and the family waits to unite with their lost child once again in the afterlife. 

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In this novel, the characters of Plantagenet Palliser, his wife Lady Glencora and their uncle the ailing Duke of Omnium are in the background. The plot centres on Lizzie Greystock, a fortune-hunter who ensnares the sickly, dissipated Sir Florian Eustace and is soon left a very wealthy widow and mother. While clever and beautiful, Lizzie has several character flaws; the greatest of these is an almost pathological delight in lying, even when it cannot benefit her. (Trollope comments that Lizzie sees lies as "more beautiful than the truth.") Before he dies, the disillusioned Sir Florian discovers all this, but does not think to change the generous terms of his will. The diamonds of the book's title are a necklace, a family heirloom that Sir Florian gave to Lizzie to wear. Though they belong to her husband's estate (and thus eventually will be the property of her son), Lizzie refuses to relinquish them. She lies about the terms under which they were given to her, leaving their ownership unclear. The indignant Eustace family lawyer, Mr Camperdown, strives to retrieve the necklace, putting the Eustaces in an awkward position. On the one hand, the diamonds are valuable and Lizzie may not have a legal claim to them, but on the other, they do not want to antagonise the mother of the heir to the family estate (Lizzie having only a life interest). Meanwhile, after a respectable period of mourning, Lizzie searches for another husband, a dashing "Corsair" more in keeping with her extravagantly romantic fantasies. She becomes engaged to a dull, but honourable politician, Lord Fawn, but they have a falling out when her character becomes better known, especially her determination to keep the diamonds. She then considers her cousin, Frank Greystock, even though he is already engaged to Lucy Morris, a poor but much beloved governess of the Fawn daughters. Greystock is a successful lawyer and Member of Parliament, but his income is inadequate to his position and spendthrift lifestyle. Lizzie believes he can shield her from the legal proceedings being initiated by Mr Camperdown. Another more Corsair-like possibility is one of the guests at her Scottish home, the older Lord George de Bruce Carruthers, a man who supports himself in a somewhat mysterious manner. Among the other guests is a young woman named Lucinda Roanoke, whose financially straitened aunt, Mrs Carbuncle, is desperate to marry her off. Despite Lucinda's deep detestation of the brutish Sir Griffin Tewett, the aunt has her way and the mismatched couple become engaged. Things take a dramatic turn on a trip to London. Lizzie, out of fear of Mr Camperdown, keeps her diamonds with her in a conspicuous strongbox. One night, at an inn, the strongbox is stolen and everybody assumes the jewellery is lost. As it turns out, Lizzie had taken the gems out and put them under her pillow, but acting on her first instincts, she perjures herself when she has to report the theft to the magistrate, thinking that she can sell the diamonds and let the robbers take the blame. Suspicion falls on both Lizzie and Lord George, acting either together or separately. In any case, the thieves, aided by Lizzie's disloyal maid, Patience Crabstick, try again and succeed in their second attempt. Lizzie feigns illness and takes to her bed. Lady Glencora Palliser pays Lizzie a visit to offer her sympathy. The police begin to unravel the mystery, putting Lizzie in a very uncomfortable position. In the end, the diamonds are lost, the police discover the truth, and Lizzie is forced to confess her lies, though she escapes legal retribution since her testimony is needed to convict the criminals. Both Frank Greystock and Lord George become disgusted by her conduct and desert her. Lucinda Roanoke grows to loathe Sir Griffin more and more intensely until, on what would have been the day of their wedding, she loses her sanity. Frank Greystock returns to Fawn Court to marry Lucy Morris. Mr Emilius, a foreign crypto-Jewish clergyman, woos Lizzie while she is in a vulnerable state and succeeds in marrying her (though it is hinted earlier in the book, and is later confirmed in Phineas Redux, that he is already married). 

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The plot centres on Anna Tellwright, daughter of a wealthy but miserly and dictatorial father, living in the Potteries area of Staffordshire, England. Her activities are strictly controlled by the Methodist church. The novel tells of Anna's struggle for freedom and independence against her father's restraints. 

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Anna lives with her young step-sister Agnes and her twice-widowed father, Ephraim Tellwright, in Bursley. The latter, once an active preacher and teacher in the Methodist movement, has become a domestic tyrant and, because of his miserly attitude to money, a wealthy man. On her 21st birthday, Ephraim unceremoniously hands Anna her unexpected inheritance from her grandmother; several parcels of shares and rented residential and industrial property that he has carefully hoarded and re-invested over the years. On paper, Anna is now a rich woman, but she has no experience in business and financial dealings, save the spending of the household expenses her father reluctantly hands over every week. She visits the rundown ‘bank’ (earthenware manufactory) operated by Titus and Willie Price, which she now owns. The Prices’ business is grossly in debt and they claim to be unable to pay the back rent, but manage to give Anna a few pounds. She is also invited to visit the up-to-date and prosperous works of Henry Mynors, and is advised by Ephraim to invest in them as a ‘sleeping partner’. She is well aware that Mynors, who she knows through shared church activities, is in love with her, but is unsure of her own feelings. Anna is invited to visit the Isle of Man by Alderman and Mrs Sutton, who see Anna as a ‘suitable’ friend for their indulged daughter, Beatrice. Mynors is also invited. By the end of the visit, Anna and Henry are engaged to be married, but Anna still harbours secret feelings for Willie Price, whom she also knows well from the Methodist movement. On her return to Bursley, Anna is devastated to learn of the suicide of Titus Price. She blames herself and her father’s squeezing of the Prices’ business, but Willie comes to call and explains that the crash of a major customer was the catalyst for his father’s suicide. It becomes clear that Willie must declare himself bankrupt, and the creditors (which include Anna) allow him enough money to emigrate to Australia. Mynors takes the large Price family residence for the marital home, even though it will need much refurbishment. He and Anna agree to marry as soon as possible, and make a home also for Agnes. Henry discovers a discrepancy in church accounts, and it becomes apparent that the Prices have been embezzling money to prop up their business. Anna and Henry determine that they will jointly make up the shortfall so that the Prices will not be blamed. But the news leaks out anyway and the whole community is soon abuzz. Anna decides that Willie should not leave Bursley empty-handed, and slips a note to him, on condition that he will not read it until he arrives in Melbourne. The note contains a money order (in the book, a 'bank-note') for one hundred pounds. Anna and Henry marry. No more is heard of Willie Price; the story implies that he too commits suicide. 

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At the start of the film, John McFarland is being driven to school by his father, who is driving erratically down the road. Noticing the damage done to the car, John realizes that his father is drunk and makes him move to the passenger seat so he can drive. When John arrives at school late, he is reprimanded by the principal, Mr. Luce. The majority of the film is spent following several high school students going about their daily lives just before a school shooting. In addition to John, who struggles with controlling his alcoholic father, photography student Elias builds a portfolio of other students. Outcast Michelle struggles with her body issues and assists in the library. Bulimics Nicole, Brittany, and Jordan gripe about their parents and squabble while popular athlete and lifeguard Nathan meets with his girlfriend, Carrie. Acadia, a close friend of John's, attends a Gay-Straight Alliance meeting. Unknown to anyone, two other students, Alex and Eric, are preparing to carry out a bomb/shooting attack on their school. Flashbacks throughout the film show them preparing for the massacre by ordering weapons online and formulating an attack plan. The two have a brief love affair in the shower after they both admit that they've never kissed anyone before. Their motives for the shooting appear vague; the film provides evidence suggesting bullying, neglect, violent video games, and Nazism. On the day of the shooting, the pair make their way to school in Alex's car. Alex is armed with a rifle while Eric has a semi-automatic pistol. As they enter the school, they encounter John, and Alex tells him to leave. Realizing what is about to happen, John tries to warn students and teachers outside not to go into the school, but few people listen. He then notices his dad is missing after they arrived earlier and goes looking for him. Alex and Eric plant propane bombs in the cafeteria, hoping to blow it up and shoot people as they try to escape the fire. When the bombs fail, they decide to start shooting indiscriminately. The pair head into the library, where Elias photographs them right before they open fire on students. Michelle is killed, while Elias' fate is left unclear. Other students quickly realize that the gunfire is real and begin to panic, and teachers begin evacuating students. Alex and Eric split up to opposing ends of the school to continue their shooting. Alex enters the girls' bathroom where he surprises Jordan, Nicole, and Brittany, presumably shooting all three. A student attending the Gay-Straight Alliance meeting enters the hallway investigating the gunfire and is shot dead. The alliance members evacuate through a window save for Acadia, who freezes at the sight of her dead classmate. Benny, an African-American student athlete, finds her and helps her out the window before deciding to find and confront the shooters. Outside the school, John finds his now sobered-up father, who tries to comfort his son as the shooting continues. While helping students escape, Mr. Luce is cornered and threatened by Eric, prompting Mr. Luce to try and reason with him. Benny walks up behind Eric, but Eric abruptly turns around and shoots Benny dead. Eric tells Mr. Luce not to treat kids like him and Alex poorly. He then lets Mr. Luce go, only to gun him down seconds later. Alex enters the cafeteria, which is strewn with overturned chairs, backpacks, several dead bodies, and numerous abandoned half-eaten lunches, and sits down. Alex picks up a cup from an abandoned lunch and casually drinks from it. Eric meets up with him, and they have a brief conversation about who they've shot, which ends when Alex shoots Eric mid-sentence. Alex leaves the cafeteria, showing no emotion over killing Eric, and discovers Carrie and Nathan hiding in a freezer. He tauntingly recites "Eeny, meeny, miny, moe" to them to decide whom he should kill first. The film then cuts to credits leaving the ending ambiguous. 

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Equality 7-2521, a 21-year-old man writing by candlelight in a tunnel under the earth, tells the story of his life up to that point. He exclusively uses plural pronouns ("we", "our", "they") to refer to himself and others. He was raised like all children in his society, away from his parents in collective homes. He believes he has a "curse" that makes him learn quickly and ask many questions. He excels at the Science of Things and dreams of becoming a Scholar, but when the Council of Vocations assigns his Life Mandate, he is assigned to be a Street Sweeper. Equality 7-2521 accepts his street sweeping assignment as penance for his Transgression of Preference in secretly desiring to be a Scholar. He works with Union 5-3992 and International 4-8818, who is Equality's only friend (which is another Transgression of Preference). Despite International's protests that any exploration unauthorized by a Council is forbidden, Equality explores a tunnel and finds metal tracks. Equality believes the tunnel is from the Unmentionable Times of the distant past. He begins sneaking away from his community to use the tunnel as a laboratory for scientific experiments. He is using stolen paper to write his journal. While cleaning a road at the edge of the City, Equality meets Liberty 5-3000, a 17-year-old Peasant girl who works in the fields. He commits another transgression by thinking constantly of her, instead of waiting to be assigned a woman at the annual Time of Mating. She has dark eyes and golden hair, and he names her "The Golden One". When he speaks to her, he discovers that she also thinks of him. He reveals his secret name for her, and Liberty tells Equality she has named him "The Unconquered". Continuing his scientific work, Equality rediscovers electricity. In the ruins of the tunnel, he finds a glass box with wires that gives off light when he passes electricity through it. He decides to take his discovery to the World Council of Scholars; he thinks such a great gift to mankind will outweigh his transgressions and lead to him being made a Scholar. However, one night his absence from the Home of the Street Sweepers is noticed. He is whipped and held in the Palace of Corrective Detention. The night before the World Council of Scholars is set to meet, he easily escapes; there are no guards because no one has ever attempted escape before. The next day he presents his work to the World Council of Scholars. Horrified that he has done unauthorized research, they assail him as a "wretch" and a "gutter cleaner" and say he must be punished. They want to destroy his discovery so it will not disrupt the plans of the World Council and the Department of Candles. Equality seizes the box, cursing the council before fleeing into the forest that lies outside the City. In the forest, Equality sees himself as damned for having left his fellow men, but he enjoys his freedom. No one will pursue him into this forbidden place. He only misses the Golden One. On his second day of living in the forest, the Golden One appears; she followed him into the forest. They live together in the forest and try to express their love for one another, but they lack the words to speak of love as individuals. They find a house from the Unmentionable Times in the mountains and decide to live in it. While reading books from the house's library, Equality discovers the word "I" and tells the Golden One about it. Having rediscovered individuality, they give themselves new names from the books: Equality becomes "Prometheus" and Liberty becomes "Gaea". Gaea is pregnant with Prometheus' child. Prometheus wonders how men in the past could have given up their individuality; he plans a future in which they will regain it. 

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Libria, a totalitarian city-state, was established by the survivors of World War III. In Libria, all emotions and emotionally stimulating objects, blamed for causing the war, have been forbidden. Those in violation are labelled "sense offenders" and are put to death. The population suppresses emotions with a daily injection of a drug called Prozium II. Libria is governed by the Tetragrammaton Council, led by "Father", who communicates propaganda through giant video screens throughout the city. At the pinnacle of Librian law enforcement are the Grammaton Clerics, trained in the martial art of gun kata. Clerics frequently raid properties in the city and the "Nether" – regions outside the city limits – to search for and destroy illegal materials (art, literature and music) and execute the people hiding them. A resistance movement, known as the "Underground", emerges to topple Father and the Tetragrammaton Council. The flag of Libria. The four Ts on the flag represent the Tetragrammaton Council. In Libria, John Preston is a high-ranking Cleric whose wife, Viviana, was executed as a sense offender, leaving him the single parent of his daughter and son. Following a raid, Preston notices his partner, Errol Partridge, saving a book of poems by W. B. Yeats instead of turning it in for incineration. After tracing Partridge to the Nether and finding him reading the book, Partridge explains that he gladly pays the heavy price of feeling emotions; Preston executes him as he slowly reaches for his gun. Preston accidentally breaks his daily vial of Prozium but is unable to replace it before going on the next raid. He begins to experience brief episodes of emotion that evoke memories, stir feelings and make him more aware of his surroundings; he intentionally skips more doses of Prozium and hides them behind the mirror in his bathroom. Partridge is replaced with the career- conscious and ambitious Brandt, who expresses admiration for Preston's "uncompromising" work as a Cleric. On a raid, they arrest sense offender Mary O'Brien. To Brandt's surprise, Preston prevents him from executing O'Brien, saying she should be kept alive for interrogation. Brandt grows suspicious of Preston's hesitation. As Preston feels remorse for having killed Partridge, he develops an emotional relationship with O'Brien and uncovers clues that lead him to meet Jurgen, the leader of the Underground resistance. Jurgen is planning to disrupt Prozium production to spark a populace uprising, and convinces Preston that Father must be assassinated. Vice-Counsel DuPont meets with Preston to reveal that there is a traitor in the upper ranks of the Clerics. Although DuPont appears to know it is Preston, he assigns him the task of uncovering and stopping the traitor. Relieved, Preston accepts and promises to make good on his vow to locate the Underground's leadership. O'Brien's execution is scheduled and Jurgen advises against interfering, as it could destroy plans for the revolution. Unable to bear letting her die, Preston tries to stop the execution, but fails. As he has an emotional breakdown in the street, Brandt arrests him and brings him before DuPont. Preston tricks DuPont into believing that Brandt is the traitor. Following Brandt's arrest, Preston is informed that a search of his home will take place as a formality. He rushes home to destroy the hidden vials only to find his son, who stopped taking Prozium after his mother died, already has. Jurgen has Preston stage the capture of the leaders of the Underground to gain the government's trust and get close enough to assassinate Father. Preston is granted an exclusive audience with Father only to discover that Brandt's arrest was faked as part of a ruse to expose Preston and the Underground. DuPont reveals that he is the real Father, having secretly replaced the original Father after his death, that he does not take Prozium, and can feel emotions. He taunts Preston, asking how it felt to betray the Underground. Enraged, Preston fights his way through an army of bodyguards to DuPont's office and kills Brandt in a katana battle. DuPont and Preston have a gun kata showdown; Preston wins and DuPont pleads for his life, asking, "Is it really worth the price?" Responding with Partridge's last words, "I pay it gladly", Preston kills DuPont. He destroys the command center that broadcasts Father propaganda, then watches with satisfaction as the revolution begins with the Underground's destruction of the Prozium manufacturing facilities. 

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While exploring his grandfather's shed, Hikaru Shindo stumbles across a Go board haunted by the spirit of Fujiwara-no- Sai, a Go player from the Heian era. Sai wishes to play Go again, having not been able to since the late Edo period, when his ghost appeared to Honinbo Shusaku, a top Go player of that period. Sai's greatest desire is to attain the – a perfect move. Because Hikaru is apparently the only person who can perceive him, Sai inhabits a part of Hikaru's mind as a separate personality, coexisting, although not always comfortably, with the young boy. Urged by Sai, Hikaru begins playing Go despite an initial lack of interest in the game. He begins by simply executing the moves Sai dictates to him, but Sai tells him to try to understand each move. In a Go salon, Hikaru twice defeats Akira Toya, a boy his age who plays Go at professional level, by following Sai's instruction. Akira subsequently begins a quest to discover the source of Hikaru's strength, an obsession which will come to dominate his life. Hikaru becomes intrigued by the great dedication of Akira and Sai to the game and decides to start playing solely on his own. He is a complete novice at first, but has some unique abilities to his advantage; for instance, once he has a basic understanding of Go, he can reconstruct a game play by play from memory. Through training at Go clubs, study groups, and practice games with Sai, he manages to become an Insei and later a pro, meeting various dedicated Go players of different ages and styles along the way. He also demonstrates a natural talent for the game and remains determined to prove his own abilities to Akira, Sai, and himself. Hikaru enters the Hokuto Cup, an international tournament for under-18 Japanese, Chinese, and Korean Go professionals. As the highest-ranking under-18 pro, Akira qualifies for the tournament, but Hikaru has to compete in a series of games to become one of the three Japanese competitors. His friends Waya and Ochi also enter the qualifying matches. He meets Kiyoharu Yashiro, a player from the Kansai Ki-in, whose style is as strange and offbeat as his own. Hikaru, along with Akira and Kiyoharu Yashiro, are selected to represent Japan, while Suyong Hong (a Korean Go player who was beaten by Hikaru earlier in the series) and two others represent Korea and three of Shinichiro Isumi's Chinese friends represent their country. The captain of the Korean Go team, Ko Yong Ha, is interviewed and his remarks are translated for Japanese viewers. The translator makes an error which causes it to appear that he is disparaging the skill of Honinbo Shusaku, who, like Hikaru, was possessed by Sai. Although Ko Yong Ha later finds out, he refuses to correct the error and instead emphasizes it when he realizes that it enrages Hikaru, who takes it as a direct affront to Sai. Considering their achievements and skills, Hikaru is still slightly under Akira. Therefore, their team coach, Atsushi Kurata, chooses Akira to be the captain. However, Hikaru wants to play against Ko Yong Ha, who is the captain in Korea, in order to show him that Sai is the most skillful Go player in the history of the game. Atsushi Kurata grants Hikaru's request when they play against Korea in the tournament because he sees the burning spirit in him. At the end, Hikaru loses by only half a point. Japan eventually comes in last, behind Korea and China. But the Japanese team impressed both professionals from China and Korea because they did much better than what was expected. At the end of the game, Ko Yong Ha asks Hikaru for his reason for playing Go. With tears in his eyes, he answers with the line "To link the far past, with the far future". The hidden meaning of this line indicates the links and emotional relationships between Sai, Shusaku, and Hikaru. However, no one understands the context of this line besides Hikaru. A bonus story, set shortly after the Hokuto Cup event, shows two Inseis, who are ranked 14th and 16th in the group, discussing whether Akira Toya or Hikaru Shindo were stronger. In the Young Lions tournament, they are each paired with Hikaru and Akira, making them change their minds about who is stronger. In the second round, Hikaru and Akira are paired against each other and begin a match, but the conclusion is unknown. 

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In Los Angeles, Lt. Parker Barnes and John Donovan are tracking down a serial killer named SID 6.7 at a restaurant in virtual reality. SID (short for Sadistic, Intelligent, Dangerous, a VR amalgam of the most violent serial killers throughout history) causes Donovan to go into shock, killing him. The director overseeing the project, before Commissioner Elizabeth Deane and her associate, William Wallace, orders the programmer in charge of creating SID, Dr. Darrel Lindenmeyer, to shut down the project. Barnes is a former police officer imprisoned for killing political terrorist Matthew Grimes, who killed Parker's wife and daughter. Barnes killed Grimes and innocent bystanders. This caused him to become a convicted killer and serve 17 years to life. Barnes meets with criminal psychologist Dr. Madison Carter following a fight between Barnes and another prisoner, Big Red. Meanwhile, Lindenmeyer informs SID that he is about to be shut down because of the fail-safe having been tampered with. At SID's suggestion, Lindenmeyer convinces another employee, Clyde Reilly, that a virtual reality prostitute, Sheila 3.2, another project created by Lindenmeyer, can be brought to life. Lindenmeyer replaces the Sheila 3.2 module with the SID 6.7 module. Now processed into the real world, SID 6.7 kills Reilly. Once word gets out of SID being in the real world, Deane and Los Angeles Police Department Chief William Cochran offer Barnes a deal: if he catches SID and brings him back to virtual reality, he will be released. Barnes agrees, and with help from Carter, they discover that Matthew Grimes, the terrorist who killed Barnes's wife and daughter, is a part of SID 6.7's personality profile. After killing a group of security guards, SID heads over to the Media Zone, a local nightclub, where he takes hostages. Barnes and Carter go to the nightclub to stop him, but SID escapes. The next day, SID begins a killing spree at the Los Angeles Olympic Auditorium. Barnes arrives at the Stadium to capture SID, and finds him on a train, where another hostage is being held by SID. However, Barnes seemingly kills the hostage in front of horrified witnesses. Having caught up with Barnes after the incident, Carter tries to prove Barnes's innocence, but Barnes is sent back to prison. Barnes is freed from his prisoner transport by SID, who once again escapes. Wallace and Deane are about to have Barnes terminated via a fail-safe transmitter implanted in him but Cochran destroys the transmitter after learning from Carter that Barnes didn't kill the hostage on the train. However, SID kidnaps Carter's daughter Karin and takes over a television studio. Lindenmeyer, having come out of hiding, sees what SID is doing and is impressed, but is later held hostage by Carter. After a fight on the roof of the studio Barnes ultimately destroys SID, but is unable to learn where he hid Karin. They place SID back in VR to trick the location out of him. When SID discovers that he is back in virtual reality he goes into a rage. Cochran lets Carter out of VR, but Lindenmeyer kills Cochran before he can release Barnes. Barnes starts to go into the same shock that Donovan suffered, but Carter kills Lindenmeyer, and saves Barnes. Barnes and Carter return to the building that SID took over in the real world, and save Karin from a booby trap set up by SID. After Karin is saved, Barnes destroys the SID 6.7 module. 

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In 1970, former Navy SEAL "frogman" John Kelly, who recently lost his pregnant wife Patricia in a car accident, picks up a hitchhiker named Pam on his way to his home on Battery Island in the Chesapeake Bay. They quickly become lovers, and over time Kelly finds out that Pamela Madden is a runaway who became a drug mule and prostitute; she had just escaped from her drug-dealer/pimp Henry Tucker. Kelly, along with the help of doctors Sam and Sarah Rosen, help her rehabilitate from barbiturates. Weeks after recovering, Kelly and Pam go to Baltimore for follow-up treatment, and pass through a neighborhood where her pimps work. One of them recognizes Pam and pursues them in a car chase. Kelly is gravely wounded by a shotgun blast, while Pam is recaptured and later tortured, gang-raped, and killed. In Vietnam, a U.S. target drone recognizes Air Force colonel and F-105 pilot Robin Zacharias as a prisoner of war in a secret camp administered by the NVA. Since Zacharias possesses highly classified technical knowledge and has been declared killed in action, Admiral Dutch Maxwell arranges a secret rescue mission for him as well as other American POWs held in the camp. Unbeknownst to them, Soviet colonel Nikolay "Kolya" Grishanov has been interrogating the prisoners; he later lobbies his government to transport Zacharias and his fellow prisoners into the Soviet Union, citing their intelligence value. However, friction between the Soviets and the North Vietnamese is leading the latter to decide to kill the POWs. Meanwhile, Kelly recovers from his wounds with the help of Dr. Sam Rosen and his head nurse, Sandy O'Toole. Vowing to exact revenge on the people responsible for Pam's death, he wages a private war on Tucker's drug ring, eliminating some of its players and saving some drug mules in the process. He recruits Rosen and O'Toole to help rehabilitate one of the rescued prostitutes named Doris. He later obtains more information on the drug ring from brutally torturing one of Pam's pimps, Billy, using a pressure chamber designed to simulate deep-water diving conditions; he is then left to die from severe decompression sickness. Later, Kelly is approached by Maxwell to lead the rescue mission on Zacharias and other American POWs, since he knew the area from his days in the UDT and had previously gone behind enemy lines to rescue Maxwell's son. Kelly takes a break from his stateside mission of revenge and proceeds to Vietnam. A KGB mole informs the Soviets of the rescue mission, which is compromised. However, Kelly captures Grishanov while escaping from the camp. The Soviet colonel is then used as leverage to negotiate the transfer of Zacharias and his fellow prisoners to Hanoi Hilton, where they will be confirmed as alive and eventually returned. Upon returning from Vietnam, Kelly finds out that Doris and her father had been brutally murdered and continues his mission of revenge. He finds out that the Asian heroin processed by Tucker's drug ring was smuggled into the U.S. through inserting them into the corpses of dead American soldiers, and also deduces that a corrupt police officer is on Tucker's payroll. Meanwhile, the CIA try to recruit him following his actions in Vietnam, but due to Kelly's difficult position, they agree to help him escape his legal woes in return for the assassination of the mole who had burned the Vietnam operation. Kelly forces the supposed mole to kill himself, who is an aide to the Special Assistant to the National Security Advisor, inadvertently leaving the real mole, a Senate aide and anti-war activist, in place. He then rushes to complete his vendetta, finally killing Tucker, his mafia associate and other cohorts. Corrupt police Lieutenant Mark Charon is incidentally murdered by the criminals. Emmet Ryan, the lead police investigator in the series of killings on drug dealers in Baltimore, has finally identified Kelly as the murderer. He confronts him on his boat, where Kelly confesses his crime. He bargains with the detective for one more hour of liberty before being arrested; Ryan agrees, but Kelly later fakes his death by capsizing his boat. He is then rescued by his CIA superiors, who then recruit him under his new identity as John Clark. He quietly resumes contact with O'Toole and marries her. Three years later, Zacharias and his fellow POWs are released after the end of the American involvement in the Vietnam War. 

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While serving in the Gulf War, Lieutenant Colonel Serling (Denzel Washington) accidentally destroys one of his own tanks during a confusing night-time battle, killing his friend, Captain Boylar (Tim Ransom). The U.S. Army covers up the details and transfers Serling to a desk job. Later, Serling is assigned to determine if Captain Karen Emma Walden (Meg Ryan) should be the first woman to (posthumously) receive the Medal of Honor. She was the commander of a Medevac Huey helicopter that was sent to rescue the crew of a shot-down Black Hawk helicopter. When she encountered a T-54 enemy tank, her crew destroyed it by dropping a fuel bladder onto the tank and igniting it with a flare gun. However, her own helicopter was shot down soon after. The two crews were unable to join forces, and when the survivors were rescued the next day, Walden was reported dead. Serling notices inconsistencies between the testimonies of Walden's crew. Specialist Andrew Ilario (Matt Damon), the medic, praises Walden strongly. However, Staff Sergeant John Monfriez (Lou Diamond Phillips) claims that Walden was a coward and that he led the crew in combat and improvised the fuel bladder weapon. Sergeant Altameyer (Seth Gilliam), who is dying in a hospital, complains about a fire. Warrant Officer One Rady (Tim Guinee), the co-pilot, was injured early on and unconscious throughout. Furthermore, the crew of the Black Hawk claim that they heard firing from an M16, but Ilario and Monfriez deny they had one. Under pressure from the White House and his commander, Brigadier General Hershberg (Michael Moriarty), to wrap things up quickly, Serling leaks the story to a newspaper reporter, Tony Gartner (Scott Glenn), to prevent another cover-up. When Serling grills Monfriez during a car ride, Monfriez forces him to get out of the vehicle at gunpoint, then commits suicide by driving into an oncoming train. Serling tracks Ilario down, and Ilario finally tells him the truth. Monfriez wanted to flee, which would mean abandoning Rady. When Walden refused, he pulled a gun on her. Walden then shot an enemy who appeared behind Monfriez, but Monfriez thought Walden was firing at him and shot her in the stomach, before backing off. The next morning, the enemy attacked again as a rescue party approached. Walden covered her men's retreat, firing an M16. However, Monfriez told the rescuers that Walden was dead, so they left without her. Napalm was then dropped on the entire area. Altameyer tried to expose Monfriez's lie at the time, but was too injured to speak, and Ilario was too scared of the court-martial Walden had threatened them with and remained silent. Serling presents his final report to Hershberg. Walden's young daughter receives the Medal of Honor at a White House ceremony. Later, Serling tells the truth to the Boylars about the manner of their son's death and says he cannot ask for forgiveness. The Boylars tell Serling he must release his burden at some point and grant him their forgiveness. In the last moments, Serling has a flashback of when he was standing by Boylar's destroyed tank and a medevac Huey was lifting off with his friend's body. Serling suddenly realizes Walden was the Huey pilot. 

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The mice orphans arrive at a theater for a free show entitled "Mickey's Big Show: Orphan's Benefit." As they file into the building and they are given free lollipops, ice cream, and balloons. Donald Duck begins the show by reciting "Mary Had a Little Lamb", and then reciting "Little Boy Blue." But when he says "come blow your horn," an orphan loudly blows his nose. He recites it a second time, but this time the orphans blow their noses. Donald loses his temper over his performance being interrupted in this manner and challenges them to fight, but is pulled backstage by an off-screen stagehand. The next act is Goofy, Horace Horsecollar, and Clarabelle Cow performing an acrobatic dance. Horace dances with Clarabelle and Goofy attempts to pick him up but gets his head stuck. Goofy then throws Clarabelle back to Horace. Horace spins Clarabelle around and throws him in Goofy's direction. Goofy catches her dress and Clarabelle closes out the act by hitting Goofy on the head. Donald decides to exact his revenge by reciting "Little Boy Blue" again and blows his own horn before the orphans can respond. An orphan blows ice cream at him to interrupt Donald and the orphans punch Donald into a daze with their boxing gloves. Then, Donald is once again pulled backstage. For the next act, Clara Cluck performs "Chi mi frena in tal momento" from Act II of Gaetano Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor, accompanied by Mickey on piano. When she is unable to reach a high B-Flat note, an orphan fires a slingshot to help finish the song. During the final act, Donald returns to the stage and quickly recites one line - "Little Boy Blue, come blow your horn" - and waits for the orphans to interrupt him. Yet as they seem well-behaved this time, Donald continues the recitation. But when he says "Where is that boy who looks after the sheep?" the orphans answer in unison "Under the haystack fast asleep, you dope," causing Donald to lose his temper again. The orphans tie bricks, a plant, a fire extinguisher and eggs onto their balloons, float them over his head, and fire their slingshots. After being laughed by the orphans, Donald ends the show and finally accepts defeat. 

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The film takes place in Koishikawa, a district of Edo (the former name of the city of Tokyo), in the 19th century. Young Dr. Noboru Yasumoto (Yūzō Kayama) is the film's protagonist. Trained in a Dutch medical school in Nagasaki, the arrogant Yasumoto aspires to the status of personal physician of the Shogunate, a position currently held by a close relative; his father is already a well-established, highly competent physician. Yasumoto believes that he should progress through the safe, and well-protected, army structure of medical education. However, for Yasumoto's post-graduate medical training, he has been assigned to a rural clinic under the guidance of Akahige ("Red Beard"), Dr. Kyojō Niide (played by Toshiro Mifune). Dr. Niide may seem like a tyrannical task master, but in reality he is a compassionate clinic director. Initially, Yasumoto is livid at his posting, believing that he has little to gain from working under Akahige. Dr. Yasumoto feels that Dr. Niide is only interested in his medical notes and soon rebels against the clinic director. He refuses to wear his uniform, disdains the food and spartan environment, and enters the forbidden garden where he meets "The Mantis" (Kyōko Kagawa), a mysterious patient that only Dr. Niide can treat. As Yasumoto struggles to come to terms with his situation, the film tells the story of a few of the clinic's patients. One of them is Rokusuke, a dying man whom Dr. Niide discerns is troubled by a secret misery that is only revealed when his desperately unhappy daughter shows up. Another is Sahachi, a well-loved man of the town known for his generosity to his neighbors, who has a tragic connection to a woman whose corpse is discovered after a landslide. Dr. Niide brings Yasumoto along to rescue a sick twelve-year-old girl from a brothel (fighting off a local gang of thugs to do so) and then assigns the girl to Yasumoto as his first patient. Through his efforts to heal the traumatized girl, Yasumoto begins to understand the magnitude of cruelty and suffering around him as well as his power to ease that suffering, and learns to regret his vanity and selfishness. When Yasumoto himself falls ill, he is nursed back to health by the care and affection of Otoyo, the twelve-year-old girl who was saved from the brothel. Through his observations of Dr. Niide's compassion and a series of destitute patients, Dr. Yasumoto learns what being a doctor really means. The lives of patients are more important than wealth or status. Their sufferings can be ameliorated with compassion and conscientious care. 

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The film is set in 1957, the present day at the time of the shooting. When construction of an irrigation canal to the village is completed, Radha (Nargis), considered to be the "mother" of the village, is asked to inaugurate the canal. She remembers her past when she was newly married. The wedding between Radha and Shamu (Raaj Kumar) is paid for by Radha's mother-in-law, who borrows the money from the moneylender Sukhilala (Kanhaiyalal). The conditions of the loan are disputed, but the village elders decide in favour of the moneylender, after which Shamu and Radha are forced to pay three quarters of their crop as interest on the loan of 500 (valued at about US$105 in 1957). While Shamu works to bring more of their rocky land into use, his arms are crushed by a boulder. Ashamed of his helplessness (being without arms), and humiliated by Sukhilala for living on the earnings of his wife, Shamu decides that he is of no use to his family and permanently leaves Radha and their three sons, walking to his own probable death by starvation. Soon after, Radha's youngest son and her mother-in-law die. A severe storm and the resulting flood destroys houses in the village and ruins the harvest. Sukhilala offers to save Radha and her sons if she trades her body to him for food. Radha vehemently refuses his offer but has to also lose her infant (her fourth son) to the atrocities of the storm. Although the villagers begin initially to evacuate the village, they decide to stay and rebuild it, persuaded by Radha. Several years later, Radha's two surviving children, Birju (Sunil Dutt) and Ramu (Rajendra Kumar), are young men. Birju, embittered since childhood by the demands of Sukhilala, takes out his frustrations by pestering the village girls, especially Sukhilala's daughter, Rupa. Ramu, by contrast, has a calmer temperament and is married soon after. Birju's anger finally becomes dangerous and, after being provoked, he attacks Sukhilala and his daughter and steals Radha's kangan (marriage bracelets) that were pawned with Sukhilala. He is chased out of the village and becomes a bandit. Radha promises Sukhilala that she will not let Birju cause harm to Sukhilala's family. On Rupa's wedding day, Birju returns with his gang of bandits to exact his revenge. He kills Sukhilala and kidnaps Rupa. When he tries to flee the village on his horse, Radha, his mother, shoots him. He dies in her arms. The film returns to 1957; Radha opens the gate of the canal and its reddish water flows into the fields. 

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Shortly after his 50th birthday, LAPD Homicide Sergeant Roger Murtaugh is partnered with Sergeant Martin Riggs, a transfer from narcotics. Riggs, a former Special Forces soldier whose wife was killed in a car accident three years prior, has turned suicidal, and has been taking his aggression out on suspects, leading to his superiors requesting his transfer. Murtaugh and Riggs quickly find themselves facing off with each other. Murtaugh is contacted by Michael Hunsaker, a Vietnam War buddy and banker, but before they can meet, Murtaugh learns that Hunsaker's daughter, Amanda, apparently committed suicide by jumping from her apartment balcony. Autopsy reports show Amanda to have been poisoned with drain cleaner, making the case a possible homicide. Hunsaker tells Murtaugh that he was concerned about his daughter's involvement in drugs, prostitution, and pornography, and was trying to get Murtaugh to help her escape that life. Murtaugh and Riggs attempt to question Amanda's pimp, but find a drug lab on the premises, leading to a shootout. Riggs kills the pimp and saves the life of Murtaugh, who starts to tolerate his new partner. Even though the case seems closed, Riggs is aware that the only witness to Amanda's apparent suicide was Dixie, another prostitute who was working away from her normal streets. They attempt to question Dixie at her home, but the building explodes as they approach it. Riggs finds parts of a mercury switch from bomb debris, indicating a professional had set the bomb; some children who had been nearby witnessed a man approach the house with a tattoo similar to the one Riggs has, and Murtaugh suspects Hunsaker is not telling the full picture. The pair visit Hunsaker before Amanda's funeral, where he reveals of having previously been an operative of "Shadow Company," a heroin-smuggling operation run by former special forces operators from the Vietnam War, masterminded by retired General Peter McAllister and his right-hand chief enforcer, Mr. Joshua. Hunsaker had been laundering the money, but wanted to get out, and when McAllister found out he had contacted Murtaugh, the general had Amanda killed in retaliation. As Murtaugh tries to get Hunsaker to reveal everything he knows about Shadow Company, Joshua arrives in a helicopter and kills Hunsaker. Then Shadow Company attempts to kill Riggs in a drive-by shooting, but he is saved by a bulletproof vest. Murtaugh and Riggs fake his murder in order to gain the upper hand. Shadow Company later kidnaps Murtaugh's daughter Rianne and demand that Murtaugh turn himself over to them for her return. Murtaugh and Riggs plan an ambush for the exchange at El Mirage Lake with Riggs providing sniper support, but Riggs is caught by McAllister and the trio are taken to an unknown location. Murtaugh and Riggs are tortured for information, but Riggs manages to overpower the captors, frees Murtaugh and Rianne, and they escape to find themselves in a busy nightclub used as a front for Shadow Company. With their cover blown, McAllister and Joshua attempt to escape separately. Joshua manages to get away, but McAllister's driver is shot by Murtaugh, causing the general's car to veer out of control and get struck by a bus on Hollywood Boulevard, and McAllister is killed when a fire causes hand grenades in the car to detonate. Murtaugh and Riggs race to Murtaugh's home, knowing that Joshua will come after his family for revenge. They arrive in time to prevent him, and Riggs beats Joshua in a violent brawl on the front lawn. As backup officers arrive to take Joshua into custody, he breaks free and steals a gun from one of the patrolmen, but Murtaugh and Riggs pull their guns and shoot Joshua dead. After visiting his wife's grave, Riggs spends Christmas with the Murtaughs, having become close friends with Murtaugh and bonding with the rest of the family. Riggs also gives Murtaugh a symbolic gift: a hollow- point bullet which he had been saving to commit suicide, as he does not need it anymore. 

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In 1991, a gang of thieves steal a rare $10-million gem, but, in the process, two of the gang double-cross their leader, Patrick Koster (Sean Bean) and take off with the precious stone. Ten years later, on the day before Thanksgiving, prominent private practice Manhattan child psychiatrist, Dr. Nathan R. Conrad (Michael Douglas), is invited by his friend and former colleague, Dr. Louis Sachs (Oliver Platt), to examine a "disturbed" young lady named Elisabeth Burrows (Brittany Murphy) at the state sanatorium. Having been released from prison on November 4, Patrick and the remaining gang members break into an apartment which overlooks Nathan's apartment, where he lives with his wife Aggie (Famke Janssen) and daughter Jessie (Skye McCole Bartusiak). He is informed by Patrick that Elisabeth is only pretending to be insane to hide out in the institution from this gang that is searching for the gem. That evening, Patrick kidnaps Jessie as a means of forcing Nathan to acquire a six-digit number from Elisabeth's memory. As Nathan visits Elisabeth, she is reluctant at first, but he gains her trust later—especially when he reveals that Jessie has been kidnapped and will be killed if he does not get the number they want. Sachs admits to Nathan that the gang who kidnapped Jessie also kidnapped his girlfriend to force him to acquire the number from Elisabeth. Sachs is then visited by Detective Sandra Cassidy (Jennifer Esposito) who reveals to him that his girlfriend has been found dead. Meanwhile, Aggie hears Jessie's voice and realizes the kidnappers reside in the apartment nearby. The kidnappers send one of them to kill Aggie while the others escape with Jessie, but Aggie sets an ambush and kills him. After Nathan takes Elisabeth out of the sanatorium, she remembers certain events regarding the gang. It is revealed that Elisabeth's father was a member of the gang that committed the robbery ten years prior and that he double-crossed them and took the stolen gem. However, other members of the gang later found him and ordered him to reveal where he had hidden the gem, subsequently pushing him in front of a subway train. The gang members were arrested immediately, and Elisabeth escaped with her doll in which the gem was hidden. She also remembers that the required number, 815508, is the number of her father's grave at Hart Island and that her doll is placed beside him in the coffin. She explains that she had stowed away on a boat that was taking her father's coffin for burial in Potter's field on Hart Island, where the gravediggers put the doll, named Mischka, inside. Nathan and Elisabeth steal a boat to reach Hart Island. The gang members track them down and demand that Nathan give them the number they want. Elisabeth reveals the number and Patrick orders his companion to exhume her father's coffin after releasing Jessie. He finds the doll and the gem hidden inside it. He then decides to kill Nathan and Elisabeth, but Cassidy arrives before he can shoot them. Patrick's companion is shot by Cassidy, but Patrick manages to wound her. Taking advantage of the confusion, Nathan takes the gem from Patrick and throws it to a nearby excavation machine. Patrick goes to recover the gem, but Nathan triggers the mechanism which covers Patrick with earth, burying him alive. Nathan reunites with Aggie and Jessie, and invites Elisabeth to live with them. 

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, the title character, is described in the theme song as being "born from an egg on a mountain top"; a stone egg and thus he is a stone monkey, a skilled fighter who becomes a brash king of a monkey tribe, who, the song goes on to claim, was "the punkiest monkey that ever popped". He achieved a little enlightenment, and proclaimed himself "Great Sage, Equal of Heaven".Episode 1, "Monkey Gets Wild About Heaven." After demanding the "gift" of a magical staff from a powerful dragon king, and to quiet the din of his rough antics on Earth, Monkey is approached by Heaven to join their host, first in the lowly position of Master of the Stable (manure disposal), and then--after his riotous complaints--as "Keeper of the Peach Garden of Immortality". Monkey eats many of the peaches, which have taken millennia to ripen, becomes immortal and runs amok. Having earned the ire of Heaven and being beaten in a challenge by an omniscient, mighty, but benevolent, cloud- dwelling , Monkey is imprisoned for 500 years under a mountain in order to learn patience. Eventually, Monkey is released by the monk , who has been tasked by the to undertake a pilgrimage from China to India to fetch holy scriptures. The pair soon recruit two former members of the Heavenly Host who were cast out and turned from angels to "monsters" as a result of Monkey's transgressions: , the water monster and ex-cannibal, expelled from Heaven after his interference caused Heaven's precious jade cup to be broken (his birthname is also later revealed to be Shao Chin, having been abducted as a child, but meets his long-lost father, in "The Beginning of Wisdom"), and , a pig monster consumed with lust and gluttony, who was expelled from Heaven after harassing the Star Princess Vega--the Jade Emperor's mistress--for a kiss. A dragon, , who was set free by Guanyin after being sentenced to death, eats Tripitaka's horse. On discovering that the horse was tasked with carrying Tripitaka, it assumes the horse's shape to carry the monk on his journey. Later in the story he occasionally assumes human form to assist his new master, although he is still always referred to as "Horse". Monkey can also change form, for instance into a hornet. In Episode 3, The Great Journey Begins, Monkey transforms into a girl to trick Pigsy. Monkey's other magic powers include: summoning a cloud upon which he can fly; his use of the magic wishing staff which he can shrink and grow at will and from time to time, when shrunk, store in his ear, and which he uses as a weapon; and the ability to conjure monkey warriors by blowing on hairs plucked from his chest. The pilgrims face many perils and antagonists both human, such as and supernatural. Monkey, Sandy, and Pigsy are often called upon to battle demons, monsters, and bandits, despite Tripitaka's constant call for peace. Many episodes also feature some moral lesson, usually based upon Buddhist and/or Taoist philosophies, which are elucidated by the narrator at the end of various scenes. 

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Lee Holloway (Maggie Gyllenhaal), the socially awkward and emotionally sensitive youngest daughter of a dysfunctional family, adjusts to normal life after having been hospitalized following an incident of dangerous self-harm. She learns to type and applies for a job as a secretary for an eccentric attorney, E. Edward Grey (James Spader). Grey explains she is overqualified for the job (having scored higher than anyone he has ever interviewed) and that it is "very dull work" as they only use typewriters; Lee, however, agrees to work under these conditions. Though at first Grey appears to be highly irritated by Lee's typos and other mistakes, it soon becomes apparent that he is sexually aroused by her obedient behavior. After he confronts her about her propensity for self-injury and commands that she never hurt herself again, the two embark on a BDSM relationship. Lee experiences a sexual and personal awakening, and she falls deeply in love. Grey, however, displays insecurity concerning his feelings for Lee, and he feels shame and disgust over his sexual habits. During this period of exploration with Grey, Lee has also been attempting to have a more conventional boyfriend in Peter (Jeremy Davies), even engaging in lukewarm sex with him. After a sexual encounter in Grey's office, Grey fires Lee. After Lee is fired from her job, Peter proposes to Lee, who reluctantly agrees to marry him. However, while trying on her wedding gown, she leaves and runs to Grey's office, where she then declares her love for him. Grey, still uncertain about their relationship, tests Lee by commanding her to sit in his chair without moving her hands or feet until he returns. Lee willingly complies, despite being forced to wet her dress since she is not allowed to use the toilet. Hours pass, as several family members and acquaintances individually visit Lee to alternately attempt to dissuade or encourage her while Grey watches from afar, completely taken by Lee's compliance. Because of Lee's refusal to leave the office, she has gained news coverage from the media, which they believe to be a hunger strike. Three days later, Grey returns to the office and takes Lee to a room upstairs where he bathes and feeds her. The pair marry and happily continue their dominant–submissive relationship. 

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250px King Arthur is sitting with his Knights of the Round Table, talking about hard times that have befallen the kingdom ever since the Black Knight stole the Singing Sword. He asks his knights—among them Sir Osis of Liver and Sir Loin of Beef—for a volunteer to get the sword back. The knights complain that the Black Knight has a fire-breathing dragon guarding the sword and is invincible. King Arthur angrily demands to know if the knights are all chicken, and is dismayed when he hears clucking and sees chicken feathers flying. Bugs, dressed as a court jester, dances in and tells King Arthur that "only a fool" would be crazy enough to go after the Singing Sword. The King agrees, and tells Bugs that he has to get the singing sword, or else face being executed. At the castle of the Black Knight—shown to be Yosemite Sam dressed in black armor—there is a fire-breathing dragon that belongs to Sam, but the dragon has come down with a cold from allowing its fire to get low, and thus, is prone to fits of sneezing, causing jets of flame to shoot from its nostrils. Sam feeds the dragon some coal to fuel the dragon's internal fire, and then goes back to taking a nap on his chair. Bugs sneaks in to the castle, past Sam and the dragon and to the chest where he pulls out the singing sword. He openly wonders why it is called a "singing sword" and finds out when it starts vibrating, making noises like a musical saw, to the tune of "Cuddle up a Little Closer, Lovey Mine". Sam wakes up and chases Bugs, but Bugs slams the door in Sam's face, causing his armor to fall off. Sam then wakes up the dragon, who unintentionally breathes fire on him. Bugs runs outside the castle, chased by Sam on the dragon. Bugs ducks into a hole, and Sam slides off the dragon when trying to stop. Bugs then runs back to the castle and raises the drawbridge as Sam approaches, causing Sam to fall into the moat. When Sam demands that Bugs lowers the drawbridge, Bugs lowers it right onto Sam's head, who yells in a muffled voice to raise it back up. Sam then uses the dragon to pull a catapult in place, gets on it and launches himself to the castle, but misses the window Bugs is looking out of, flattening his front. Next, Sam lassos a rope around one of the battlements of the castle, but as he is climbing up, Bugs whacks Sam on the head with a mallet, causing Sam to slide down the rope outside of his armor. Thinking the coast is clear, Bugs sneaks out of the castle. Sam and his dragon are hidden behind a rock waiting for Bugs, but the dragon sneezes on Sam again, alerting Bugs to their presence. Bugs then runs back into the castle, followed by Sam and the dragon (who stops briefly to sneeze again). Bugs runs into a room, Sam and the dragon follow, then Bugs sneaks out and locks the door to what is now shown as an explosives stockade. Surrounded by all kinds of explosives, Sam tries to keep the dragon from sneezing again. As Bugs walks away from the castle, the dragon sneezes, and the tower Sam and the dragon are in takes off like a rocket, flying towards the moon. Bugs waves goodbye, saying: "Farewell to thee". The singing sword picks up on this and starts humming "Farewell to Thee" as Bugs walks off. 

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The story takes place in the setting for many King stories: the fictional town of Castle Rock, Maine. Revolving around two local families, the narrative is interspersed with vignettes from the seemingly mundane lives of various other residents. There are no chapter headings, but breaks between passages indicate when the narration switches to a different perspective. The middle-class Trentons have recently moved to Castle Rock from New York City, bringing with them their four-year-old son, Tad. Vic Trenton discovers his wife, Donna, has recently had an affair with a tennis player named Steve Kemp. In the midst of this household tension, Vic's advertising agency, Ad Worx, is failing due to a scandal over a cereal called Red Razberry Zingers. Vic, and his business partner Roger Breakstone, are forced to travel out of town, leaving Tad and Donna at home alone. The blue- collar Cambers, meanwhile, are longtime residents of Castle Rock. Joe is a mechanic who dominates and abuses his wife, Charity, and their ten-year-old son, Brett. Charity wins a $5,000 lottery prize and uses the proceeds to trick Joe into allowing her to take Brett on a trip to visit Charity's sister, Holly, in Connecticut. Joe acquiesces and secretly plans to use the time to take a pleasure trip to Boston with his friend and alcoholic retired vet neighbor, Gary Pervier. While the Cambers are getting ready for their respective trips, their dog Cujo, a large good-natured Saint Bernard, chases a wild rabbit in the fields around their house and inserts his head in the entrance to a small limestone cave. A bat bites him on the nose and infects him with rabies. Charity and Brett leave town, and while they are gone, Cujo kills Gary Pervier, and eventually Joe Camber as well. Donna, home alone with Tad, takes their failing Ford Pinto to the Cambers' for repairs. The car breaks down in Camber's dooryard, and as Donna attempts to find Joe, Cujo appears and attacks her. She climbs back in the car as Cujo starts to attack. Donna and Tad are trapped in their vehicle, the interior of which becomes increasingly hot in the summer sun. During one escape attempt, Donna is bitten in the stomach and leg, but manages to survive and escape back into the car. She plans to run for the house but abandons the idea because she fears the door will be locked and that she will be subsequently killed by Cujo, leaving her son alone. Vic returns to Castle Rock after several failed attempts to contact Donna and learns from the police that Steve Kemp, the man with whom Donna was having an affair, is suspected of ransacking his home and possibly kidnapping Donna and Tad. To explore all leads, the state police send Castle Rock Sheriff George Bannerman out to the Cambers' house, but Cujo attacks and kills him. Donna, after witnessing the attack and realizing Tad is in danger of dying of dehydration, battles Cujo and kills him. Vic arrives on the scene with the authorities soon after, but Tad has already died from dehydration and heatstroke. Donna is rushed to the hospital, and Cujo's head is removed for a biopsy to check for rabies prior to the cremation of his remains. The novel ends several months later with both the Trenton and Camber families trying to move on with their lives. Donna has completed her treatment for rabies and her marriage to Vic has survived. Charity gives Brett a new, vaccinated puppy named Willie. A postscript says that the hole Cujo chased the rabbit into was not discovered. It also reminds the reader that Cujo was a good dog who always tried to keep his owners happy, but the ravage of rabies drove him to violence. 

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College student T.S. Quint is preparing for a trip to Universal Studios Florida in Orlando with Brandi Svenning, during which he plans to propose to her; however, Brandi tells him she cannot go due to having volunteered to fill in as a contestant on Truth or Date, her father's dating game show, because the original contestant had died from an embolism bursting in her brain while swimming 700 laps at the local Y.M.C.A following T.S.'s comment regarding her weight. T.S. dismisses the blame, and they argue over this and break up. T.S. turns to his best friend Brodie Bruce, who has been dumped by his girlfriend Rene, and Brodie suggests the two might find comfort at the local mall. Brodie and T.S. discover Truth or Date is being filmed at the same mall, through their friend Willam, who throughout the film tries to see a sailboat in a Magic Eye poster. The two ask local slackers Jay and Silent Bob to destroy the show's stage, a task for which they devise elaborate, but ultimately unsuccessful plans. Brodie and T.S. run into Tricia Jones, a 15-year-old senior who is writing a book on the sex drive of men ages 14–30, for which she has sex with various men as research and films every encounter. She then reveals that the previous night she had sex with Shannon Hamilton, a 25-year- old clothing-store manager who hates Brodie because of his "lack of a shopping agenda." Brodie then learns that Rene has begun a relationship with Shannon. Brodie confronts Rene to find out more about the relationship, and the two have sex in an elevator. Brodie is later abducted and attacked by Shannon, who intends to have sex with Rene in a "very uncomfortable place". As a result of this incident, Jay and Silent Bob assault the mall's Easter Bunny, under the incorrect assumption that he attacked Brodie. Brandi's father Jared has Brodie and T.S. arrested on false charges of drug possession at the mall. Jay and Silent Bob are able to rescue Brodie and T.S., and they hide out at a local flea market, where they meet topless fortune teller Ivannah, who gives them both advice on their relationship problems. T.S. decides to win Brandi back and the two return to the mall. Before the show begins, Brodie meets famed Marvel legend Stan Lee, who gives him advice on romance. After this, Brodie requests that his friend Tricia Jones retrieve footage of her having sex with Shannon. Meanwhile, T.S. also persuades Jay to get two of the game show contestants stoned, which allows him and Brodie to replace them on Truth or Date. During the show, Brandi recognizes the voices of Brodie and T.S., and an on-air argument between them ensues. Brodie ultimately gets the two to stop arguing, explaining that T.S. has been pining for Brandi all day. Then T.S. proposes to Brandi, and she accepts. As the police arrive to arrest T.S. and Brodie after the show is over, Silent Bob plays a sex tape of Shannon and Tricia, resulting in his arrest for statutory rape. Brodie and Rene renew their relationship as a result. The conclusion reveals that T.S. marries Brandi at Universal Studios while on a Jaws attraction, Tricia's book is a bestseller, Shannon is imprisoned (and subsequently raped), Willam eventually does see the sailboat, Brodie becomes the host of The Tonight Show (with Rene as his bandleader), and that Jay and Silent Bob gets a orangutan named Suzanne. 

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Forty-something schoolmistress Kate and her two best friends, police superintendent Janine and doctor Molly, live in rural Britain and share their single lives and dating exploits in weekly chats. Kate has recovered from ovarian cyst disease and fears a relapse; she hasn't been dating much. By chance, she meets Jed, a former student of hers, now a handsome twenty- something church organist. To her surprise, she ends up sleeping with him and the two embark on an unlikely relationship that's looked on with suspicion by Janine and Molly. Janine comes to believe in Kate and Jed's feelings for each other. But Molly is still dubious, showing Jed's criminal record and medical history to Kate, bringing adult dates to their dinner parties and taking her and Janine to Paris so that she will go off Jed. Conversely, this brings Kate and Jed closer together and they plan their wedding. Molly eventually attempts to prove Jed's faithlessness by seducing him, which fails but angers Kate to the extreme. After an argument about how Kate has kept their engagement quiet, Jed is thrown out of Kate's house. He is struck and killed by a passing truck; this unexpected tragedy breaks the three women up, as Kate is inconsolable and Janine blames Molly. Kate reluctantly embarks on a mild romance with a local vicar who's always been in love with her, but when she finally agrees to marry him, she becomes ill at the altar. Molly and Janine take her away, and discover that she is pregnant with Jed's child. She decides to have the baby and raise it on her own, while the vicar meets a woman who's actually excited about him. Also, Janine starts going out with Bill (a robbery suspect) and Molly falls for a pediatrician named Eleanor. The three friends reconcile and continue to share their lives and experiences. 

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Travis Henderson walks alone through the West Texas desert in a fugue state, before stumbling into a building and losing consciousness. A German doctor examines him and determines he is mute, but discovers he possesses a telephone number and calls it. The call is answered by Walt Henderson, Travis' brother from Los Angeles. Walt has not seen or had contact with Travis for four years, and agrees to travel to Terlingua, Texas, to retrieve him. His French wife, Anne, is concerned about the matter, as they have adopted Travis' son Hunter, with Hunter's biological mother Jane also missing. Walt reaches Terlingua, and finds Travis wandering from the clinic where he was found. The two brothers begin driving back to Los Angeles. With Walt becoming increasingly frustrated with Travis' muteness, Travis finally utters the name "Paris", asking to go there. Walt mistakenly assumes he means Paris, France. Farther down the road, Travis shows Walt a photograph of empty property in Paris, Texas, which he had purchased, believing he was conceived in that town. The brothers reach Los Angeles where Travis is reunited with Anne and Hunter. Hunter, aged seven, has very little memory of his father, and is wary of Travis until the family watches home movies from days when they were all together. Hunter realizes that Travis still loves Jane. As Hunter and Travis become reacquainted, Anne reveals to Travis that Jane has had contact with her, and makes monthly deposits into a bank account for Hunter. Anne has traced the deposits to a bank in Houston. Travis realizes he can possibly see Jane if he is at the Houston bank on the day of the next deposit, only a few days away. He acquires a cheap vehicle and borrows money from Walt. When he tells Hunter he is leaving, Hunter wishes to go with him, though he does not have Walt or Anne's permission. Travis and Hunter drive to Houston, while Hunter recounts the Big Bang and the origins of Earth. When they arrive at the Houston bank, Hunter identifies his mother in a car, making a drive-in deposit. He calls for Travis via walkie-talkie, and they follow her car to a peep-show club where she works. While Hunter waits outside, Travis goes in, finding the business has rooms with one-way mirrors, where clients converse with strippers via telephone. He eventually sees Jane, though she cannot see him, and leaves. The next day, Travis leaves Hunter at the Méridien Hotel in downtown Houston, with a message that he feels obliged to reunite mother and son, as he feels responsible for separating them in the first place. Travis returns to the peep show. Seeing Jane again, and with her seemingly unaware of who he is, he tells her a story, ostensibly about other people. He describes a man and younger girl who meet, marry and have a child. When the child is born, the wife suffers from postpartum blues and dreams of escaping from the family. The husband descends into alcoholism and becomes abusive, imprisoning her in the trailer they live in. After a failed attempt to escape, the man ties the woman to the trailer stove and goes to bed, dreaming of withdrawing to an unknown place "without language or streets" while his wife and child scream from the kitchen. He wakes up to find the trailer on fire and his family gone, and in despair runs for five days until leaving civilization entirely. Jane realizes she is speaking with Travis, and that he is recounting the story of their relationship. He tells her that Hunter is in Houston and needs his mother. Jane has longed to be reunited with her boy, and that night, enters the hotel room where Hunter is waiting, while Travis watches from the parking lot. As Jane embraces Hunter, Travis climbs into his vehicle and drives away. 

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Powerful and moving Story of an Ex- Criminal's struggle for rehabilitation. 

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Bruce Nolan is a television field reporter for Eyewitness News on WKBW-TV in Buffalo, New York, but desires to be the news anchorman. When Bruce is passed over for promotion by his rival, Evan Baxter, he becomes furious, his actions leading to his dismissal from the station, followed by a series of misfortunes. Bruce complains to God that "He's the one that should be fired". Bruce receives a message on his pager, which takes him to an empty warehouse where he meets God. God offers to give Bruce his powers to prove that he is doing the job correctly. God tells Bruce that he cannot tell others he has God's powers, nor can he use the powers to alter free will. Bruce is initially jubilant with the powers, using them for personal gain, such as by getting his job back, and impressing his girlfriend, Grace Connelly. Bruce finds ways of using his powers around Buffalo to cause miraculous events to occur at otherwise mundane events that he covers, such as discovering Jimmy Hoffa's body or causing a meteor to harmlessly land near a cook-off, earning him the name "Mr. Exclusive". Bruce then causes Evan to embarrass himself on-air, causing Evan to be fired in favor of Bruce as the new anchor. During this, Bruce continues to hear voices in his head. He later re-encounters God, who explains the voices are prayers, meant for God, that Bruce must deal with. Bruce creates a computerized email-like system to receive the prayers and respond but finds that the influx is far too many for him to handle —even though God has stated that Bruce is only receiving prayers from the Buffalo area— and sets the program to answer every prayer Yes automatically. Bruce attends a party celebrating his promotion. When Grace arrives, she finds Bruce kissing his co-anchor, Susan Ortega, after she forcefully comes on to him, and quickly leaves. Bruce follows her, trying to use his powers to convince her to stay but cannot influence her free will. As Bruce looks around, he realizes that Buffalo has fallen into chaos due to his actions: parts of the city believe the Apocalypse is nearly upon Earth due to the meteor strikes, while a large number of people, all having prayed to win the multi-million dollar lottery and finding they all won reducing their prize to a few dollars, have started rioting in the streets. Bruce returns to God, who explains that He cannot solve all the problems and Bruce must figure out a way himself. Bruce returns to his computer system at his home and goes about answering prayers as best he can. As Bruce reads through them, he finds a prayer from Grace, wishing for his success and well-being. As Bruce reads it, another prayer from Grace arrives, this one wishing not to be in love with him anymore. Bruce is stunned and walks alone on a highway, asking God to take back his powers and letting his fate be in his hands. Bruce is suddenly hit by a truck and regains his consciousness in a white void. God appears, and He asks Bruce what he really wants; Bruce admits that he only wants to make sure Grace finds a man that would make her happy. God agrees, and Bruce finds himself in the hospital, where doctors help him recover. Grace arrives, in which she and Bruce finally rekindle their relationship and later become engaged. Following his recovery, Bruce returns the anchor position to Evan and goes back to his field reporting, but decides to take more pleasure in the simple stories. 

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During spring the flowers, mushrooms, and trees do their calisthenics. Some trees play a tune, using vines for harp strings and a chorus of robins. A fight breaks out between a waspish-looking hollow tree and a younger, healthier tree for the attention of a female tree. The young tree emerges victorious, but the hollow tree retaliates by starting a fire. The plants and animals try to extinguish or evade the blaze. By poking holes in clouds and making it rain, the birds manage to put out the fire, although the hollow tree perishes in the flames after getting caught up in them himself. The young tree then proposes to the female tree, with a caterpillar serving as a ring, and they embrace as a 12-color rainbow forms behind them. 

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Tillie's Punctured Romance Charles Chaplin portrays a womanizing city man who meets Tillie (Marie Dressler) in the country after a fight with his girlfriend (Mabel Normand). When he sees that Tillie's father (Mack Swain) has a very large bankroll for his workers, he persuades her to elope with him. In the city, he meets the woman he was seeing already, and tries to work around the complication to steal Tillie's money. He gets Tillie drunk in a restaurant and asks her to let him hold the pocketbook. Since she is drunk, she agrees, and he escapes with his old girlfriend and the money. Later that day, they see a picture show entitled "A Thief's Fate", which illustrates their thievery in the form of a morality play. They both feel guilty and leave the theater. While sitting on a park bench, a paperboy (Gordon Griffith) asks him to buy a newspaper. He does so, and reads the story about Tillie's Uncle Banks (Charles Bennett), a millionaire who died while on a mountain-climbing expedition. Tillie is named sole heir and inherits three million dollars. The man leaves his girlfriend on the park bench and runs to the restaurant, where Tillie is now forced to work to support herself as she is too embarrassed to go home. He begs her to take him back and although she is skeptical at first, she believes that he truly loves her and they marry. They move into the uncle's mansion and throw a big party, which ends horribly when Tillie finds her husband with his old girlfriend, smuggled into the house and working as one of their maids. The uncle is found on a mountaintop, alive after all. He goes back to his mansion, in disarray after Tillie instigated a gunfight (a direct result of the husband smuggling the old girlfriend into the house) which, luckily, did not harm anyone. Uncle Banks insists that Tillie be arrested for the damage she has caused to his house. The three run from the cops all the way to a dock, where a car "bumps" Tillie into the water. She flails about, hoping to be rescued. She is eventually pulled to safety, and both Tillie and the man's girlfriend realize that they are too good for him. He leaves, and the two girls become friends. 

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It is the late 1870s.The 1876 Battle of the Little Bighorn has already occurred; chapter 93. Captain Woodrow F. Call and Captain Augustus "Gus" McCrae, two famous retired Texas Rangers, run the Hat Creek Cattle Company and Livery Emporium in the small Texas border town of Lonesome Dove. Working with them are Joshua Deets, an excellent black tracker and scout from their Ranger days; Pea Eye Parker, another former Ranger who is reliable but unintelligent; Bolivar, a retired Mexican bandit who works as their cook; and Newt Dobbs, a 17-year-old boy whose mother was a prostitute named Maggie and whose father is widely thought by the outfit to be Call, though Call has never acknowledged this. Jake Spoon, another former Ranger, arrives in Lonesome Dove after an absence of more than 10 years, during which he has traveled widely across the United States. He is on the run, having accidentally shot a dentist in Fort Smith, Arkansas. The dentist's brother happened to be the sheriff, July Johnson. Reunited with Gus and Call, Jake's description of Montana inspires Call to gather a herd of cattle and drive them north to begin the first cattle ranch north of the Yellowstone River. Call, who has grown listless in retirement, is attracted to the romantic notion of settling pristine country. Gus is less enthusiastic but changes his mind when reminded that the love of his life, Clara, lives on the Platte River near Ogallala, Nebraska, which would be on the route to Montana. The Hat Creek outfit rustles cattle from across the border in Mexico and recruits local cowboys in preparation for the drive. Ironically, Jake Spoon decides not to go at all, having made himself comfortable with the town's only prostitute, Lorena Wood, who is smitten with him after he promises to take her to San Francisco. At Lorena's insistence, however, she and Jake ultimately trail along behind the cattle drive. In Fort Smith, the sheriff July Johnson has departed town on the trail of Jake Spoon, taking his 12-year-old stepson Joe with him. July's wife Elmira, who regrets her recent marriage to him, leaves shortly afterwards to search for her former lover Dee Boot. Inept deputy sheriff Roscoe Brown is sent after July to inform him of her disappearance, and has many misadventures and strange encounters through Arkansas and Texas, assisted by a young girl named Janey, who escapes from sexual slavery to accompany him. Roscoe eventually reunites with July and Joe when they rescue him and Janey from bandits in Texas. As the cattle drive moves north through Texas, Jake tires of Lorena and abandons her to go gambling in Austin. Left alone, she is abducted by an Indian bandit named Blue Duck, an old nemesis of the Texas Rangers. Gus goes in pursuit, and while traveling along the Canadian River he encounters July's group. Gus and July attack Blue Duck's bandit encampment, killing the bandits and rescuing Lorena; however, Blue Duck has already made his escape, having murdered Roscoe, Joe, and Janey in the process. A devastated July continues his journey in search of Elmira, while Gus and Lorena return to the cattle drive. Lorena has been repeatedly raped and, suffering from post- traumatic stress disorder, is frightened of interacting with anybody other than Gus. The two of them, still following the cattle drive north, sleep in a tent some distance behind the other cowboys. Meanwhile, Jake Spoon is in Fort Worth. Hearing that July Johnson has been looking for him, Jake leaves Texas in a hurry in the company of the Suggs brothers, whom he soon realizes are bandits. Jake becomes increasingly alarmed by the brothers' actions as they travel north into Kansas; the gang progresses from robbery to outright murder, but Jake is too frightened and outnumbered to either kill them or escape. When the gang attacks a trail boss known to Gus and Call, the former Rangers of the Hat Creek outfit go in pursuit of them. The ex-Rangers are dismayed when they apprehend the Suggs brothers and find Jake alongside them. Jake pleads with his former comrades that he had no choice but to go along with things for fear of his own life, but Gus and Call stand firm that he has "crossed a line," and they solemnly hang him alongside the Suggs brothers. Newt, who had idolized Jake as a child, is left deeply upset. Meanwhile, Elmira, pregnant with July's child, has come into the company of a rough buffalo hunter named Zwey, a simple man who seems to believe he is now "married" to her. Arriving in Nebraska they come across the horse ranch of Clara Allen, Gus's former love, whose husband Bob has become a brain-damaged invalid after being kicked by a mustang. Clara delivers Elmira's baby son, but Elmira and Zwey leave almost immediately afterwards for Ogallala. Dee Boot is held in the Ogallala jail, scheduled to be hanged for his accidental murder of a young boy; Elmira collapses while speaking to him, and Boot is hanged while she recuperates in a doctor's house, leaving her heartbroken and depressed. July arrives at Clara's ranch, learns what has transpired, and goes to see her, but Elmira refuses to speak to him. Shortly afterwards she orders Zwey to take her east, back towards St. Louis. July feels compelled to follow her, but at Clara's insistence he remains at the ranch with her family and his son instead,who Clara had named Martin, anguished and heartbroken. Word later reaches them that Elmira and Zwey were killed by Sioux. The Hat Creek outfit arrives in Nebraska, and Gus takes Lorena, Call, and Newt to visit Clara. She is happy to see him but has no desire to rekindle their romance; however, she takes in Lorena, whose post-traumatic stress is easing and who feels comfortable with Clara and her daughters. Gus, rebuffed by Clara and no longer Lorena's sole carer, decides to go with the cattle drive and see the journey to Montana through to its end. In Wyoming, several horses are stolen by half-starved Indians. Call, Gus, and Deets chase after them, and Deets is killed in the ensuing confrontation by the group's only remaining brave. Shortly afterwards Gus informs Newt that Call is his father, something Newt has always dreamed of, but he is too upset by Deets' death to give it much thought. The cattle drive arrives in Montana, which is as lush and beautiful as Jake had described. Scouting ahead of the main herd, Gus and Pea Eye are attacked by Blood Indians, and Gus is badly wounded by two arrows to the leg. Besieged in a makeshift dugout in the bank of the Musselshell River for several days, Gus' wounds become infected, and his health declines. After a heavy rain he sends Pea Eye down the swollen river to seek help, but Pea Eye loses his clothing, boots, gun and food in the river and stumbles naked, and unarmed with no food for a 100 mile walk across the plains. Starving, delirious and suffering from exposure, he returns to the main herd on the verge of death. Call then sets out alone to rescue Gus. Meanwhile, Gus leaves the river shortly after Pea Eye, feverish and dying, taking his chances and escaping the Indians. He makes it to Miles City, Montana, and collapses unconscious, waking to find that a doctor has sawed off his gangrenous leg. His other leg is also infected, but Gus refuses to let the doctor amputate it. Call arrives in Miles City and fruitlessly tries to convince Gus to have his other leg removed; Gus, however, would rather die than be an invalid. Gus asks Call to bury him next spring in an orchard in Texas where he used to picnic with Clara, and Call begrudgingly agrees. After writing letters to Clara and Lorena, and urging Call to accept Newt as his son, Gus dies of blood poisoning. Call leaves Gus' body in storage in Miles City, intending to return him to Texas after the winter. He continues north with the cattle drive, despondent over losing his closest friend. Eventually, he establishes a ranch between the Missouri River and the Milk River. Call suffers from depression all winter, no longer caring about the cattle drive or the ranch, and contemplating what to do about Newt. Before leaving in the spring, he puts Newt in charge of the ranch and gives him his horse, his rifle, and his family watch, but still cannot bring himself to claim the boy as his son. Newt is inwardly upset but accepts the gifts nonetheless. Call, ashamed of himself, leaves the ranch. Call retrieves Gus' body, packed in a coffin with salt and charcoal, and begins the long journey south. In Nebraska, he gives Gus' letters to Clara and Lorena. Clara considers the journey a whimsical folly typical of Gus and urges Call to bury him on her ranch, but Call refuses, having given Gus his word. Clara tells Call she despises him as a "vain coward" for refusing to claim Newt as his son,Chapter 101. and he leaves Nebraska haunted by her condemnation."He found that he could not easily forget a word Clara said... her words stinging in his heart and head," chapter 102. The story of the cowboy transporting his dead friend's body spreads across the plains, and Call takes a circuitous route through Colorado and New Mexico to avoid the increasing attention. In Santa Rosa, New Mexico, he discovers that Blue Duck has been captured by a sheriff's deputy and is about to be hanged. Call visits Blue Duck in his jail cell, and the half-breed taunts him, pointing out that he raided, killed, raped, and kidnapped with impunity throughout his life despite the best efforts of the Texas Rangers. On the day of his hanging, Blue Duck jumps out a third-story window on his way to the roof where the gallows were awaiting him, pulling along with him the sheriff's deputy who had caught him, killing them both. Arriving back in Texas exhausted, despondent, and wounded from a bullet to his side, Call buries Gus by the spring in the orchard in San Antonio, true to his word. He then rides on to Lonesome Dove, where the cook Bolivar, who had abandoned the cattle drive before it left Texas, is delighted to see him again. In town, Call finds that the saloon has burned down; the proprietor, who had been madly in love with Lorena, committed suicide after her departure by burning down his saloon while he remained inside. 

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Heinz Piper introduces the story as the conferencier: Miss Sophie (Warden) is celebrating her 90th birthday. As every year, she has invited her four closest friends to a birthday dinner: Sir Toby, Admiral von Schneider, Mr. Pomeroy, and Mr. Winterbottom. However, she has outlived all of them, requiring her butler James (Frinton) to impersonate the guests. James not only must serve Miss Sophie the four courses – mulligatawny soup, North Sea haddock, chicken and fruit – but also serve the four imaginary guests the drinks chosen by Miss Sophie (sherry, white wine, champagne and port wine for the respective courses), slip into the role of each guest and drink a toast to Miss Sophie. As a result, James becomes increasingly intoxicated and loses his dignified demeanour; he pours the drinks with reckless abandon, breaks into "Sugartime" by the McGuire Sisters for a brief moment, and at one point accidentally drinks from a flower vase, which he acknowledges with a grimace and exclaims "Huh, I'll kill that cat!" There are several running gags in the piece: *James frequently trips over the head of a laid tiger skin; as an additional punchline, he walks past it in one instance to his own astonishment, but then stumbles over it on the way back. In another instance, he gracefully steps over it, and in the final instance, the tipsy James leaps over the head. *Sir Toby would like to have poured a small extra amount of each drink, and James complies with the request with initial politeness and then increasing sarcasm. *Miss Sophie expects James, as Admiral von Schneider, to knock his heels together with the exclamation "Skål!" (Swedish for "Cheers!"). Because this action proves painful, he asks each time whether he really has to, but obliges upon Miss Sophie's insistence. The gag is broken as an additional punchline when the drunk James' feet miss each other, causing him to stumble. *Before each course, James asks and gradually babbles "The same procedure as last year, Miss Sophie?"; Miss Sophie replies "The same procedure as every year, James". Finally, Miss Sophie concludes the evening with an inviting "I think I'll retire", to which James and Sophie repeat their exchange concerning the "same procedure". James nonchalantly responds "Well, I'll do my very best" before the pair retreat to the upper rooms. 

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A combined Russian- American special forces operation captures General Ivan Radek, the dictator of Kazakhstan. Three weeks later, U.S. President James Marshall attends a diplomatic dinner in Moscow, during which he praises the capture and insists the U.S will no longer negotiate with terrorists. Marshall and his inner circle, including his wife Grace and 12-year-old daughter Alice, and several of his Cabinet and advisers, prepare to return to the U.S. on Air Force One. In addition, members of the press have been invited aboard, including six Radek loyalists disguised as journalists: Egor Korshunov, Andrei Kolchak, Sergei Lenski, Igor Nevsky, Boris Bazylev and Vladimir Krasin. After takeoff, Secret Service agent Gibbs, who is secretly a mole and Radek agent, enables Korshunov and his accomplices to obtain weapons and storm the plane, killing many of the other agents and military personnel before taking the civilians hostage. Marshall is raced to an escape pod in the cargo hold and seemingly escapes as the pod is ejected. Korshunov and Kolchak breach the cockpit and prevent the aircraft from making an emergency landing at Ramstein Air Base. Several F-15s escort Air Force One as it is diverted towards Kazakhstan. Unknown to the hijackers, Marshall, a veteran of the Vietnam War and Medal of Honor recipient, has remained hidden in the cargo hold instead of using the pod. Using his military training, he observes the Radek loyalists and kills Krasin and Bazylev, then uses a satellite phone in the luggage to make contact with his Vice President, Kathryn Bennett, at the White House. Korshunov, having already contacted Bennett to demand Radek's release, and believing that a Secret Service agent is stowed away in the cargo hold, secures Grace and Alice separately from the other hostages and executes National Security Advisor Jack Doherty and Deputy Press Secretary Melanie Mitchell. Korshunov warns Bennett he will continue to execute hostages every 30 minutes unless Radek is released. Marshall dumps some of the plane's fuel reserve in an attempt to force a landing. Korshunov subsequently demands a mid-air refueling, while Marshall captures Nevsky and forces him to the conference room where the hostages are being held. Marshall, along with his military advisers, devise a plan to trick Korshunov to take Air Force One to a lower altitude for the refueling, which will allow time and altitude for the hostages to parachute safely off the plane. As a KC-10 tanker docks with Air Force One, Marshall and the advisors escort the hostages to the cargo hold, where most parachute away. However, Korshunov discovers the deception and forces Air Force One away, causing the fuel to ignite and destroying the tanker. Lenski heads down into the hold and causes a severe decompression, sending Nevsky falling to his death and allowing him to capture Marshall, Chief of Staff Lloyd Shepherd, Major Norman Caldwell, and Gibbs. When Korshunov forces him to contact Russian President Stolicha Petrov and arrange for Radek's release from prison, Bennett is urged by Defense Secretary Walter Dean to declare the President incapable under the 25th amendment, so as to override Radek's release, but she refuses. Marshall breaks free, and kills Kolchak and Lenski. Korshunov tries to kill Marshall, but Shepherd instead takes the bullet, leaving him wounded. Korshunov drags Grace down to the cargo hold, and to the plane's parachute ramp. Marshall chases Korshunov and Grace briefly distracts him, before Marshall strangles Korshunov with a parachute strap and breaks his neck. Marshall races back to lift his order, and Radek is subsequently shot dead attempting to flee custody. Marshall, with Major Caldwell's help, directs the plane back towards friendly airspace, only to be quickly tailed by a second batch of Radek loyalists piloting MiG-29s. The F-15s counterattack the MiGs, but one MiG ruptures Air Force One's fuel tanks, causing the plane to lose fuel. When one F-15 pilot sacrifices himself to intercept a missile, shrapnel from the resulting explosion damages Air Force One's tail controls, rendering landing impossible. A standby USAF Rescue MC-130 is called to help, sending para-jumpers on tether lines to help rescue the survivors. Marshall insists that his family and the injured Shepherd be transferred first. When there is time for only one more transfer, Gibbs kills the para-jumper and Major Caldwell. Marshall and Gibbs fight for control of the transfer line; Marshall gains the upper hand, grabbing the line and attaching it to himself at the last second. Air Force One crashes into the Caspian Sea, killing Gibbs. The MC-130 airmen reel Marshall in safely, where he walks into his family's waiting arms. Everyone in the White House Situation Room celebrate as confirmation of Marshall's rescue is given, and Bennett tears up the presidential incapacity order. The MC-130 is subsequently dubbed with the call sign of Air Force One as it flies safely away along with its F-15 escorts. 

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The film begins with what a BBC reviewer called "perhaps one of cinema's most innovative opening sequences." The scene is a long, behind-the- back tracking sequence featuring Frank Bigelow (Edmond O'Brien) walking through the hallway of a police station to report his own murder. Oddly, the police have been expecting him and already know who he is. A flashback begins with Bigelow in his hometown of Banning, California, where he is an accountant and notary public. He decides to take a one-week vacation in San Francisco, but this does not sit well with Paula Gibson (Pamela Britton), his confidential secretary and girlfriend, as he does not want her to accompany him. Bigelow accompanies a group from a sales convention on a night on the town. At a "jive" nightclub called "The Fisherman," unnoticed by Bigelow, a stranger in a distinctive coat and scarf swaps his drink for another and skulks away. The nightclub scene includes one of the earliest depictions of the Beat subculture. The next morning, Bigelow feels ill. He visits a doctor's office, where tests reveal he swallowed a "luminous toxin" for which there is no antidote. A second opinion confirms the grim diagnosis, and the other doctor implies that the poisoning must have been deliberate. Bigelow remembers his drink tasted strange. With a few days to live at most, Bigelow sets out to untangle the events behind his impending death, interrupted occasionally by phone calls from Paula. She provides the first clue: a man named Eugene Phillips, who had been urgently trying to contact Bigelow for the last few days, had suddenly died. Bigelow travels to Phillips' import-export company in Los Angeles, first meeting Miss Foster (Beverly Garland) (whose on-screen credit reads "Beverly Campbell"), the secretary, and then Mr. Halliday (William Ching), the company's comptroller, who tells him Eugene Phillips committed suicide by jumping from the balcony of his high-rise apartment a day earlier. From there, the trail leads to Phillips' widow (Lynn Baggett) and brother Stanley (Henry Hart), from whom he learns that Eugene had been arrested 2 days ago and made bail 1 day ago. Six months earlier, Eugene had sold some rare iridium to a dealer named Majak and the iridium turned out to be stolen. Eugene had bought the iridium from a George Reynolds and then 2 months ago, had grown suspicious that something was wrong. As it turned out, Bigelow was the notary who had notarized the bill of sale document for George Reynolds made out to Eugene Phillips. Eugene could have proven he made a legitimate deal and cleared himself legally via the bill of sale but the document had mysteriously gone missing. Eugene thought Reynolds took it and that Reynolds was the only one who had reason to eliminate evidence of the transaction. He had been trying but had been unable to locate Reynolds. In trying to find Reynolds, Bigelow connects Phillips' mistress, Marla Rakubian (Laurette Luez), to gangsters led by Majak (Luther Adler). They capture Bigelow and take him to Majak, where he learns that Reynolds, actually Majak's nephew, whose real name was Raymond Rakubian, died about a month after the sale in the same manner of being poisoned. Majak had no reason to want to kill Bigelow since the bill of sale was from a "Reynolds" not "Rakubian". However, now Bigelow has learned too much, ie, that Majak had Rakubian unload stolen stuff on Phillips, then bought it back from him. So Majak, aware he could be subject to ten years in prison and at his age that would be the rest of his life, orders his psychopathic henchman Chester (Neville Brand) to kill him. However, Bigelow manages to escape and Chester is killed by the police while attempting to kill Bigelow. Bigelow now thinks Stanley and Miss Foster are his killers, but now in a plot twist, when he confronts them, he finds Stanley has just been poisoned too, after having dinner with Mrs. Phillips and Halliday. Stanley produces a letter, found in Eugene's desk that very day by Miss Foster, evidence that Halliday and Mrs. Phillips have been having an affair. Bigelow directs Foster to call an ambulance and tells them what poison has been ingested so that, in Stanley's case at least, prompt treatment may save his life. Upon confronting Mrs. Phillips, Bigelow learns that she originally diverted him with the theft of the iridium issue ... Eugene died because he had discovered the affair, quarreled with Halliday, and Halliday threw him off of the 6th floor balcony. They hoped this would make it seem that Eugene committed suicide, that he was guilty and wanted to avoid the potential prison sentence. However, when they discovered that there was evidence of his innocence in the notarized bill of sale, Halliday targeted Bigelow, who had knowledge of that document. Bigelow seeks to track Halliday down at the Phillips company and soon Halliday emerges. He is wearing the same distinctive coat and scarf as the mysterious man in the bar who had switched Bigelow's drink for the poisoned one. Halliday draws a gun and shoots first but Bigelow shoots him to death, firing several bullets into him. The flashback comes to an end. Bigelow finishes telling his story at the police station and dies, his last word being "Paula." The police detective taking down the report instructs that his file be marked "D.O.A." 

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Elwood Blues is released from prison after serving eighteen years for the events of the previous film and is informed that his brother, "Joliet" Jake Blues, has died. He is picked up by Matara, a friend who works for his former drummer Willie Hall, who wants to help him get back on his feet. Before meeting up with Willie, Elwood asks to be dropped off to see Sister Mary Stigmata who is now working at a hospital after the St Helen of the Blessed Shroud Orphanage was closed, despite Jake and Elwood's actions in the previous film. She informs him that Curtis, his surrogate father, has also died, but has fathered an illegitimate son, Cabel Chamberlain, who is an Illinois State Police commander, and introduces him to an orphan, Buster, to suggest mentoring him. Against Stigmata’s advice, Elwood tracks down Cabel at his police headquarters, to inform him of his real father and asks him to join The Blues Brothers Band that he plans on reforming. Cabel, upset by the news and offended by the suggestion to join him after seeing Elwood's and Jake's criminal history, throws him out of the building where Buster steals his wallet containing enough money for Elwood to purchase a new Bluesmobile. Elwood and Buster begin tracking down members of the former band to recruit them from their current jobs. Willie runs a strip club and joins after it is burned down by the Russian mafia, after Elwood enlists the help of Willie’s barman, "Mighty" Mack McTeer, to try and convince them to leave the club alone; Mack becomes the new lead singer of the band. Two other members, Matt "Guitar" Murphy and "Blue" Lou Marini, join again against the advice of Murphy's wife, with whom they now run a Mercedes-Benz car dealership. Three members (Steve "The Colonel" Cropper, Donald "Duck" Dunn and Tom "Bones" Malone) work at a radio station and quickly agree to join, Alan "Mr Fabulous" Rubin (who now works as a funeral director) is forced to join against his will after Elwood insults the Russian mafia (for whom Mr Fabulous has organised a funeral) again, and finally Murphy Dunne joins after his boss at a call center gives him permission. The newly reformed band uses their old agent, Maury Sline, to book them a show. On the way to the show, they are followed by Cabel and the Illinois state police, who are now looking for Elwood for stealing Cabel’s wallet earlier, and believing that he has kidnapped Buster. While avoiding a police roadblock Elwood interrupts a white supremacist militia group meeting, unintentionally destroying their boat full of explosives they planned to use. The band arrives at the show to find they have been mistakenly booked as a Bluegrass Band, but they perform the show anyway. Afterwards, they evade capture by the police. However, en route to the next concert, the Bluesmobile runs out of fuel and the band threatens to quit, with Elwood acknowledging defeat. But Buster inspires Elwood to give an impassioned speech defending blues music, and the band relents, accompanying him again - save Blue Lou, who, in a rare show of intelligence, goes to get fuel for the Bluesmobile. The police catch up with the band at a tent revival where Elwood's old friend Reverend Cleophus James is preaching. Before Cabel can arrest them he has an epiphany brought on by Reverend Cleophus that he should join the band instead of being a police officer - and magically trades in his police uniform for a Blues Brothers black suit, black hat and sunglasses. The band evades capture once more now with Cabel joining them who the police believe they have brainwashed. The band continues on to their next booking, a tryout for a Battle of the Bands put on by Queen Mousette, allegedly a 130-year-old cannibalistic voodoo witch. Queen Mousette requests the band play something Caribbean, and when Elwood explains they don’t play that kind of music, she casts a spell on them to play anyway. Mousette accepts the band into the battle; however, at the song's conclusion, Elwood, Mack, and Cabel are turned into hollow plastic statues, forcing the band to stay overnight. At the show, Queen Mousette undoes the spell to allow the Blues Brothers band to play against the Louisiana Gator Boys; a supergroup of blues musicians, one of whom is Malvern Gasperone, who sold Elwood the Bluesmobile. The Louisiana Gator Boys win the battle. After the battle, the show is interrupted by the arrival of both the Russian mafia and the militia group from earlier, both of whom are turned into rats by Queen Mousette when they threaten a shootout. The Illinois state police arrive, but stand down after Cabel informs them that he is all right and with the band by choice. Elwood suggests that two bands jam together on stage, which they do, and when Stigmata arrives, he uses the performance as cover to say goodbye to Cabel and Mack and escape with Buster, with the police giving chase. 

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A scientist by the name of Dennis Nuel is working at, and attending, an institute of scientific research and pioneering work into the fictional scientific field of "Zievatronics", the manipulation of Time and Space. After the death of his mentor, however, he is taken off the project and another professor takes over. After a time, the device that has been created to move through space and time, known as the "Zievatron" encounters operational problems and is fixed to the co-ordinates of a world that appears to be very similar to our Earth in most respects, and Dennis is re-recruited to help fix it. He volunteers to be sent to the other world in order to fix the other part of the Zievatron. On arriving to this planet, he finds the Zievatron dismantled and critical parts of it missing. Of the three surveillance robots sent through to this planet, he finds two have also been broken apart. After a while, he finds the last robot, intact and still functioning, and uses it to view any recorded images that might help him identify what it was that happened to the Zievatron. In this world, instead of objects wearing out as you use them, they improve. This is referred to as the Practice Effect. For example, swords get sharper with use, baskets get stronger the more things they carry, mirrors, furniture and decorations look more attractive the more they are looked at. The downside to this being that an object's condition deteriorates over time if not put to use. Under this system, members of society's higher strata employ servants to Practice their own possessions to perfection. It is eventually discovered that the Practice Effect is the result of an elusive, biologically-engineered creature known as a Krenegee Beast that causes a change in a law of thermodynamics. This creature emits a field under which the Practice Effect works. The closer one is to the Krenegee Beasts, the more efficient the Practice that is done. The Practice Effect can take many months before an object reaches its maximum point of "practice", but the process is sped up if one is under a Felthesh Trance. The presence of a Krenegee Beast speeds up the process more than a Felthesh Trance. 

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Trailer for To Catch a Thief The pattern of a string of jewel robberies on the French Riviera causes the police to believe that the infamous jewel thief John "The Cat" Robie (Cary Grant) has left his comfortable retirement of growing grapes and flowers. He gives the police the slip at his hilltop villa. Robie visits a restaurant. The staff are his old gang, paroled for their work in the French Resistance during World War II as long as they keep clean. Bertani, Foussard, and the others angrily blame Robie because they are all under suspicion so long as the new Cat is active. When the police arrive at Bertani's restaurant looking for Robie, Foussard's teenage daughter Danielle (Brigitte Auber), who has a crush on him, spirits him to safety. Robie recognizes he can prove his innocence by catching the new Cat in the act. He enlists the aid of an insurance man, H. H. Hughson (John Williams), who reluctantly discloses a list of the most expensive jewelry owners currently on the Riviera. Tourists Jessie Stevens (Jessie Royce Landis), a wealthy nouveau riche widow, and her daughter Frances (Grace Kelly), top the list. Robie strikes up a friendship with them. Jessie is delighted but Frances offers a pretense of modesty. When Robie and Frances run into Danielle at the beach, Robie keeps up the mask of being a wealthy American tourist, despite Danielle's jealous barbs about his interest in Frances. Frances sees through Robie's cover. She seduces him, dangling before him her jewels. She teases him with steamy tales of rooftop escapades and offers herself as an accomplice who might share his crimes. Fireworks fill the night sky. The next morning, Jessie discovers her jewels are gone. Robie is accused by Frances of using Frances as a distraction so he could steal her mother's jewelry. The police are called, but Robie has disappeared. To catch the new Cat, Robie stakes out an estate at night. He struggles with an attacker. A second attacker raises a wrench and appears to hit Robie, who then falls off the estate's seawall into the water. But it is Foussard, who dies in the fall. The police chief publicly announces that Foussard was the jewel thief, but, as Robie points out privately in the presence of the abashed Hughson, this would have been impossible because Foussard had a wooden leg, and could not climb on rooftops. Foussard's funeral is marred by Danielle's loud accusation that Robie is responsible for her father's death. Outside the graveyard, Frances apologizes to Robie and confesses her love. Robie needs to continue his search for the Cat. He asks Frances to arrange his attendance at a fancy masquerade ball, where he believes the Cat will strike again. At the ball, Frances is resplendent in a gold gown, whilst Robie is unrecognizable behind the mask of a Moor. The police hover nearby. Upstairs, the cat burglar silently cleans out several jewel boxes. When Jessie asks the Moor to go and get her "heart pills," Robie's voice tips off the authorities as to his identity. Upon the masked Moor's return, the police wait as he and Frances dance together all night. When the masked Moor and Frances go to her room, the mask is removed: it was Hughson, who switched places with Robie to conceal Robie's exit. Robie lurks on the rooftop, and his patience is finally rewarded when he spots a figure in black. However just as his pursuit begins, the police throw a spotlight on him and demand he halt. He flees as they shoot at him, but he nonetheless manages to corner his foe with jewels in hand. Unmasked, his nemesis turns out to be Foussard's daughter, Danielle. She loses her footing on the roof, but Robie grabs her hand before she can fall. He forces her to confess the father-daughter involvement loudly to the police, and that Bertani was the ringleader of this gang. Robie speeds back to his villa. Frances follows to convince him that she has a place in his life. He agrees, but looks less than thrilled when she says, "Mother will love it up here." 

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A young woman hanging clothes on a line happily points out the arrival of "manine" or fluffy poplar seeds floating on the wind. The old man pottering beside her replies, "When fluff-balls come, cold winter's done." In the village square, schoolboys jump around trying to pluck puffballs out of the air. Giudizio (Aristide Caporale), the town idiot, looks into the camera and recites a poem to spring and the "manine". At the hairdresser's, a Fascist has just had his head shaved when Fiorella arrives to accompany her sister Gradisca (Magali Noël), the village beauty, to the traditional bonfire celebrating spring. As night falls, the inhabitants of Borgo make their way to the village square: the blind accordion player (Domenica Pertica) relentlessly tormented by schoolboys; Volpina (Josiane Tanzilli), the stringy blond nymphomaniac; the stout and buxom tobacconist (Maria Antonietta Beluzzi); Titta (Bruno Zanin), the adolescent protagonist; and Aurelio (Armando Brancia), Titta's father, a construction foreman of working-class background. Aurelio responds in frenzied anger to Titta's pranks while Miranda (Pupella Maggio), his wife, always comes to her son's defence. Miranda's brother, Lallo (Nando Orfei), lives with Titta's family, sponging off his brother-in-law. In tow are Titta's grandfather (Peppino Ianigro), and a street vendor, Biscein (Gennaro Ombra), the town's inveterate liar. Giudizio sits an effigy of the "Old Witch of Winter" in a chair on the stack and Gradisca sets it aflame. Lallo maliciously removes the ladder, trapping Giudizio atop the inferno. He screams as the crowd dances round the bonfire and schoolboys explode firecrackers. From a window, the Fascist bigwig (Ferruccio Brembilla) fires his pistol into the air. "I feel spring all over me already," says Gradisca in ecstasy. The local aristocrat and his decrepit wife raise a toast to the dying flames. Schoolboys drag Volpina near the cinders then swing her back and forth in rhythm to the blind accordionist's tune. A motorcyclist roars through the glowing coals. Women scoop the scattered embers into pans as the town lawyer (Luigi Rossi) appears walking his bicycle. He addresses the camera to explain choice tidbits of the town's history. A florid suite of raspberries interrupts him and he departs in a huff. Zeus (Franco Magno), the red-haired crusty schoolmaster, presides over an official class photograph. After showing us a wall hung with the portraits of the king, the pope and Mussolini, Fellini serves up a sequence of classroom antics involving Titta, Gigliozzi (Bruno Lenzi), Ovo (Bruno Scagnetti) and Ciccio (Fernando de Felice), the class fat boy who has a crush on Aldina (Donatella Gambini), a lovely brunette. If the schoolboys are stereotypical delinquents, their teachers are ridiculous. During her inane lessons on Giotto's perspective, the art teacher (Fides Stagni) dips a breakfast biscuit in milk. Expanding her voluptuous chest, the feral-faced maths teacher (Dina Adorni) demonstrates an algebraic formula. Clicking tongue and palate to pronounce a syllable, the Italian teacher (Mario Silvestri) is reduced to hysterics by Ovo's parody of him. Myopic religion instructor Don Balosa (Gianfilippo Carcano) wipes his glasses and drones on while half the class sneaks out for a smoke in the toilets. "Fu Manchu!" cries Volpina, prowling on a sunburnt beach. When workers at Aurelio's construction site invite her to join them, the foreman promptly sends her off. Mortar, an old brick-maker, is asked to recite his new poem entitled Bricks: :My grandfather made bricks :My father made bricks :I make bricks, too, :but where's my house? Aurelio replies with a homily on the virtues of hard work. During dinner with his family, Aurelio explodes when news arrives that Titta urinated on the neighbour's hat. The ensuing squabble builds into a delirious domestic fit. Titta and his gang follow Gradisca on her promenade under the arcades and, when that proves fruitless, flatten their noses against an irate merchant's shop window. Lallo and his fellow Don Juans spot a carriage-load of new prostitutes on their way to the local brothel. The news spreads like wildfire to the town's male population. The main concerns of Don Balosa, who doubles as the town priest, are floral arrangements and making sure his schoolboys avoid masturbation. At confession he warns Titta that "Saint Louis cries when you touch yourself." Given his fantasies involving the busty tobacconist, the sensual math teacher, the fat-bottomed peasant women on bicycles, Volpina the man-eater, and Gradisca whom he tried to grope at the Cinema Fulgor, Titta complains that it can't be helped. A dirty dust cloud announces the visit of the federale during a parade led by the local gerarca. Following behind him are the maths teacher and her colleagues, rejuvenated by Fascist rhetoric. Now in uniform, Lallo joins the parade shouting "Mussolini's got balls this big!" In a wild daydream, Ciccio stands before the giant face of Mussolini, who blesses him and his "Fascist bride", Aldina. Surreptitiously wired into the bell tower of the town church, a gramophone plays a recording of the Internationale but it is soon shot at and destroyed by gun-crazy Fascists. Owing to his anarchist past, Aurelio is brought in for questioning and forced to drink castor oil. He limps home in a nauseous state to be washed by Miranda. We discover later that it was Lallo who betrayed him. In a series of fantasy sequences at the Grand Hotel, Gradisca is encouraged to bed the Fascist high official in return for government funds to rebuild the town's harbour while pimple-faced Biscein recounts the night he made love to twenty-eight women in the visiting sultan's harem. The Grand Hotel also provides the backdrop to Lallo's gang of mother- controlled layabouts who obsessively pursue middle-aged female tourists. One summer afternoon, the family visits Uncle Teo (Ciccio Ingrassia), Aurelio's brother, confined to an insane asylum. They take him out for a day in the country but he escapes into a tree yelling, "Voglio una donna!" ("I want a woman!"). All attempts to bring him down are met with stones that Teo carries in his pockets. A dwarf nun and two orderlies finally arrive on the scene. Marching up the ladder, the nun reprimands Teo, who obediently agrees to return to the asylum. "We are all mad at times," sighs Aurelio. The town's inhabitants embark in small boats to meet the passage of the SS Rex, the regime's proudest technological achievement. By midnight they have fallen asleep waiting for its arrival. Awakened by a foghorn, they watch in awe as the liner sails past, capsizing their boats in its wake. Titta's grandfather wanders lost in a disorienting fog so thick it seems to smother the house and the autumnal landscape. Walking out to the Grand Hotel, Titta and his friends find it boarded up. Like zombies, they waltz on the terrace with imaginary female partners enveloped in the fog. The annual car race provides the occasion for Titta to daydream of winning the grand prize, Gradisca. One evening the buxom tobacconist is about to close up shop when Titta tries to cadge a cigarette. She ignores him but he catches her interest by boasting that he can lift her. Daring him to try, she's aroused when he succeeds. Setting her down again, he goes to sit breathlessly in a corner as she draws the shop's iron shutter and exposes a breast, overwhelming Titta by her sheer size. The teenager's awkward efforts end with him being suffocated by the very objects of his desire. Losing all interest, she sends him away after giving him the cigarette for free. On the cusp of winter, Titta falls sick and is tended by his mother. "This will go down as the Year of the Big Snow!" announces the lawyer peering out from behind a snow bank. As Gradisca makes her way to church in the town square, Titta follows in hot pursuit and is almost run over by the motorcyclist bombing through a labyrinth of snow. On a visit to comfort his ailing mother in hospital, she tells him that it's time he matured. A friendly snow fight breaks out between Lallo, Gradisca, and the schoolboys but is quickly interrupted by a piercing bird call. They watch mesmerized as a peacock, on the rim of a frozen fountain, shows off his magnificent tail. Titta wakes to find the house in mourning: Miranda has died. Locking himself in his mother's bedroom, he breaks down and cries. After the funeral he walks out to the quay just as the puffballs return drifting on the wind. In a deserted field with half the village present, Gradisca celebrates her marriage to a balding pot-bellied officer. A man raises his glass and exclaims, "She's found her Gary Cooper!" Someone asks, "Where's Titta?" "Titta's gone away!" cries Ovo, as Gradisca drives off with her Carabiniere to the tune of the blind accordion player. 

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Ultratech is a very powerful megacorporation which organizes a tournament called Killer Instinct. Along with regular participants, experimental creatures created by Ultratech also fight in the tournament so their strength can be tested. Ultratech also discovers a technology to make bridges between dimensions, and releases a two- headed cyclops, satyr-like monster called Eyedol from his dimensional prison in Limbo. 

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Howard Kirk is a lecturer in sociology at the local university. He is a "theoretician of sociability". The Kirks are trendy leftist people, but living together for many years and the advance of middle age have left unfavourable traces in their relationship. It is Barbara Kirk who notices this change, whereas Howard is as enthusiastic and self-assured as always. Officially, the Kirks oppose traditional gender roles just as fiercely as the exploitation of humans by other humans. Nevertheless, practices have crept into their lives, which do not live up to such high standards: Howard writes books, while Barbara—stranded with much of the housework and two little children—would like to but never gets round to doing it. Any female student who comes to live with—rather than work for—them is made to babysit and perform domestic chores. 

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SBU's in the matrix can be represented as a circle; the radius exhibits the size of the market, the SBU's holdings in the market are equated through a pie chart within the circle and an arrow outside the circle shows the standing of the SBU expected in the future. In the image attached for example, an SBU holds 45% of the market's shares. The arrow is outwards thus showing that the SBU is expected to grow and gain strength and then its tip indicates the future position of the SBU. 

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In Copenhagen in 1962, a high-ranking Soviet intelligence officer, Boris Kusenov (Per-Axel Arosenius), defects to the West. During debriefing, CIA agent Mike Nordstrom (John Forsythe) learns that Soviet missiles with nuclear warheads will be placed in Cuba. Needing physical evidence, Nordstrom discloses Kusenov's name to French agent André Devereaux (Frederick Stafford) and asks him to bribe Luis Uribe (Donald Randolph), a member of Cuba's UN delegation, to provide photographs of documents that confirm the missile bases in Cuba. Devereaux decides to accompany his daughter, Michèle (Claude Jade), on her honeymoon to New York City with his son-in-law, François Picard (Michel Subor). In New York City, a French- Martinican agent, Philippe Dubois (Roscoe Lee Browne), is to contact Uribe, who is the secretary to Cuban official Rico Parra (John Vernon), who is staying at the Hotel Theresa in Harlem to show solidarity with the black community. Dubois sneaks into the hotel and bribes Uribe to take the documents from Parra's office to photograph. Parra catches Dubois photographing the documents. Chased and shot at by Cuban revolutionaries, Dubois purposefully knocks into Devereaux, who is watching events from the other side of the street, and slips him the camera. A red-headed Cuban guard helps Devereaux to get up but lets him go. Dubois escapes into the crowd around the hotel. Dubois's photos confirm that the Soviets are placing missiles in Cuba. Devereaux, despite his wife's accusations of infidelity, flies to Cuba. His mistress, Juanita de Cordoba (Karin Dor), was the widow of a "hero of the Revolution," which enables her to work undercover in the resistance. Upon his arrival, Devereaux finds Parra, another of her lovers, leaving Juanita's mansion. Devereaux asks Juanita to take photographs of the missiles. Juanita's loyal domestic staff, Carlotta and Pablo Mendoza, pose as picnickers and photograph the missiles. Pursued, the two hide the incriminating film before they are captured. During a mass rally and a lengthy speech by the líder máximo, the red-headed Cuban guard recognises Devereaux's face from the New York City incident. Parra has heard from the tortured Carlotta Mendoza that Juanita is their leader. He embraces her and shoots her dead to save her from extreme torture. At the Havana airport, the Cuban authorities fail to find the microfilms that Deveraux has. He returns to find that his wife has left him. Devereaux is to be recalled to Paris. Kusenov tells him about the existence of a Soviet spy organisation, "Topaz," within the French intelligence service. He is given the name of NATO official Henri Jarré (Philippe Noiret), who leaked documents to the KGB. In Paris, he is picked up at the airport by his daughter and his son-in-law. Michèle brings to a cocktail Jacques Granville (Michel Piccoli), an old friend of André. Michèle hopes that her parents will get alon, but Nicole cannot forgive André's affair with Juanita. André and Michèle stay alone, and Jacques complains the agent Martin (John van Dreelen) that Nicole married Andre. Devereaux researches the leak and invites some of his old friends and colleagues, including Jarré, to a lunch at a fine Paris restaurant under the pretext of helping Devereaux prepare for his inquiry. Devereaux tells the others about Topaz to provoke some reaction. Jarré claims that it is misinformation and that Kusenov died a year ago. Jarré starts to panic and visits the leader of the spy ring, Jacques Granville. Devereaux, Nicole, and Granville were close friends from their days together during the French Resistance. Granville tells Jarré that it was a mistake to say Kusenov was dead since the Americans will easily discover that Jarré lied. As Jarré leaves Granville's house, Devereaux's wife arrives to meet Granville, her lover. Devereaux sends his son-in-law, François, to interview Jarré. Devereaux and Michèle rush to Jarré's flat and find Jarré dead, which is a staged suicide, and François has disappeared. After being clubbed and kidnapped, François managed to escape from his captors' car with an overheard phone number. Nicole tells her family with tearful eyes that since the phone number is Granville's, he must be the leader of Topaz. Granville, exposed, commits suicide (in the American and the French versions) or flees to the Soviet Union (in the British version). 

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Nemo is a young clownfish who lives with his father Marlin in an anemone in the Great Barrier Reef. Nemo, despite being hampered by a lame right fin, is eager to explore life around the ocean. Marlin, however, is overprotective of him, having lost his wife Coral and all their other eggs in a barracuda attack, leaving Nemo as his only child. On Nemo's first day of school, Marlin unintentionally embarrasses him, and while Marlin is distracted with the teacher, Mr. Ray, Nemo defiantly sneaks away from the reef toward a speedboat, where he is captured by a pair of scuba divers. Marlin tries to chase the boat and meets Dory, a blue tang who suffers from acute short-term memory loss, who offers her help. During an encounter with three sharks who have sworn to abstain from eating other fish, Marlin notices a diver's mask that fell from the boat that took Nemo. Marlin and Dory fight over the mask, giving Dory a nose bleed, which sends one of the sharks into a feeding frenzy, and Marlin and Dory narrowly escape, but are knocked unconscious when the sharks accidentally set off a ring of old naval mines. Meanwhile, Nemo is placed in an aquarium in a dentist's office in Sydney, Australia, where he meets the Tank Gang, including yellow tang Bubbles, starfish Peach, cleaner shrimp Jacques, blowfish Bloat, royal gramma Gurgle, and damselfish Deb, led by Gill, a Moorish idol. That night, Nemo learns he is to be given to the dentist's young niece, Darla, whose rough treatment has killed most of her previous fish. Gill devises a risky escape plan: Nemo, who can fit inside the aquarium's filter tube, will jam the filter with a pebble, forcing the dentist to put the fish into plastic bags while he cleans the tank, giving them the opportunity to roll out the window and into the harbor. Nemo attempts the maneuver, but fails and is almost killed, leaving Gill guilt-ridden. Marlin and Dory wake up unharmed, but the mask falls into a deep sea trench. Swimming after it, Marlin is chased by an anglerfish, while Dory reads the address and recites it repeatedly to commit it to memory. Dory and Marlin receive directions from a school of moonfish, but Marlin disregards their instructions to take what he believes is a safer route, leading them into a forest of jellyfish where they end up unconscious from all the jellyfish stings. Marlin and Dory wake up to find themselves on the East Australian Current with a group of friendly sea turtles including Crush and his son, Squirt. Marlin tells them about his quest, impressing them, and the story is relayed across the ocean, all the way to the dentist's office, where a pelican named Nigel tells the Tank Gang. Inspired by his father's bravery, Nemo makes another attempt to jam the filter and succeeds, and soon the aquarium's contents are covered in green algae. Marlin and Dory exit the East Australian Current and are engulfed by a blue whale. Dory communicates with the whale, who carries them to Sydney Harbor and expels them through its blowhole. There, they meet Nigel, who help the pair escape from a group of seagulls and takes them to the dentist's office. Meanwhile, the dentist has installed a new high-tech filter, foiling the Tank Gang's escape. Darla arrives, and the dentist prepares to give Nemo to her. Nemo plays dead to save himself as Nigel causes a disturbance, terrifying Darla and throwing the office into chaos. After the dentist throws Nigel out, Gill helps Nemo escape through a drain that leads to the ocean. Thinking that Nemo is dead, Marlin thanks and bids farewell to Dory and begins his journey home. Marlin's departure causes Dory to lose her memory. She meets Nemo as he reaches the ocean, but does not remember him. However, Dory's memory returns when she reads the word "Sydney" on a drainpipe. She reunites Nemo with Marlin, but is caught by a fishing trawler with a school of grouper. With Marlin’s blessing, Nemo enters the net and he and Marlin order the fish to swim down in order to break the boat's net to escape. After returning home to the reef, Marlin and Dory watch Mr. Ray take Nemo and his friends on a field trip. At the dentist's, the filter has broken, and the gang, having been put in bags, roll out of the window and into the harbor. Still stuck, they ponder what happens next. 

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Armand Goldman is the openly-gay owner of a drag club in South Beach called The Birdcage; his life partner Albert, an effeminate and flamboyant man, plays Starina, the star attraction of the club. They live together in an apartment above The Birdcage with Agador, their flamboyant Guatemalan housekeeper who aspires to be in Albert's drag show. One day, Armand's son Val, who resulted from Armand's drunken one-night stand with a woman named Katharine, comes home to announce that he has been seeing a young woman named Barbara whom he intends to marry. Although unhappy about the news, Armand agrees to support his son. Unfortunately, Barbara's parents are the ultra-conservative Republican Senator Kevin Keeley and his wife Louise. Kevin, co-founder of a conservative group called the Coalition for Moral Order, becomes embroiled in a political scandal when his co-founder and fellow senator is found dead in the bed of an underage black prostitute. Louise and Barbara convince Kevin that a visit to meet the family of his daughter's fiancé would be the perfect way to stave off bad press, so they set out for South Beach. Barbara shares news of her father's plan to Val; to cover the Goldmans' truth, she has told her parents that Armand is straight and a cultural attaché to Greece. Armand dislikes the idea of being forced into the closet, but agrees to play along, enlisting the help of friends and club employees to redecorate the family's apartment to more closely resemble a traditional household. Val and Armand attempt to get Albert out of the house, but when they fail Albert suggests he'll pose as Val's straight uncle. Armand contacts Katharine and explains the situation; she promises to come to the party and pretend to be his wife. Armand then tries to coach Albert on how to be straight, but Albert's flamboyant nature makes the task difficult. When Albert realizes his plan will not fool anyone, he takes offense and locks himself in his room. The Keeleys arrive at the Goldmans (who are calling themselves "Coleman" for the evening to hide their Jewish heritage) redecorated apartment; they are greeted by Agador, who is attempting to pass as a Greek butler named Spartacus for the night. Unfortunately, Katharine gets caught in traffic, and the Keeleys begin wondering where "Mrs. Coleman" is. Suddenly, Albert enters, dressed and styled as a conservative middle-aged woman. Armand, Val, and Barbara are nervous, but Kevin and Louise are taken-in by the disguise. Despite the success of the evening, trouble begins when the senator's chauffeur betrays him to two tabloid journalists, Harry Radman and his photographer, who have been hoping for a scoop on the Coalition story and follow the Keeleys to South Beach. While they research The Birdcage, they also remove a note that Armand has left on the door informing Katharine not to come upstairs. When she arrives, she unknowingly reveals the deceptions, leading Val to confess to the scheme and identify Albert as his true parent. Kevin is initially confused by the situation, but Louise informs him of the truth and scolds him for being more concerned with his career than his family's happiness. When attempting to leave, he is ambushed by the paparazzi camped outside to take his picture. Albert then realizes that there is a way for the family to escape without being recognized. He dresses them in drag and they use the apartment's back entrance to sneak into The Birdcage where they slowly make their way out of the nightclub without incident. Barbara and Val are married in an interfaith service that both families attend. 

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The series follows the story about Tsukasa being mind-trapped into the game. Despite being a "fantasy quest type adventure", it does not rely on action sequences. Instead, the show is driven by mystery, slowly revealing its secrets to the viewer while paying much attention to the individual characters. Questions like what happened to Tsukasa in the real world, who he really is, and why he cannot log out are driving points of the story. Soon after the beginning of the series, Tsukasa is led to a hidden area. There he meets Morganna, depicted as a voice without physical appearance, and Aura, who appears as a young girl clad entirely in white, floating asleep above a bed. The storyline introduces Morganna as an ally, but her real intentions are unknown at this point. As the story progresses many characters are introduced, some who want to help, some who have ulterior motives. Then more questions arise as to "what is happening in the game itself, who are these various characters, what are their true goals and what will happen to Tsukasa". All the while he is seen struggling with his increasingly dire situation as well as his own social and emotional shortcomings. Tsukasa isolates himself, but eventually he begins to get closer to other players, and builds strong relationships with some of them; the most important is the one born between him and Subaru, a kind and thoughtful female Heavy Axeman.Bear: "The reason Tsukasa is still barely able to be involved with people is because of Subaru. If I was the enemy, I would strike at her." BT: "If that happens, then Tsukasa would surely be unable to recover. (...) We should not think of those two separately." .hack//Sign, episode 24, Net Slum. In the meantime, the series follows the quest for the , a legendary item rumored to have the ability to bypass the system in The World. Some characters want the Key to gain the power this supposedly confers. Others believe the item will provide Tsukasa with a way to log out. Despite their reasons for seeking it, everyone agrees that it is related to Tsukasa in some way, as he is also a factor bypassing the system in the game. His body being in a coma in the real world adds a sense of urgency to the quest. Near the end of the series, Tsukasa's real-life identity takes a more central place in the storyline, particularly in relation to his growing bond with Subaru. The series shows his fear and insecurity as he confesses to her that he is probably a girl in the real world.Tsukasa: "Is there really a place for me to return to?" Subaru: "There is. As long as you desire it." Tsukasa: "I don't like this place. But... (...) I thought that I was a guy. But that's because my memories were altered. (...) I think the real me is a girl. Do you still want to see me [in the real world]?" Subaru: "Yes. Because..." Tsukasa: "Because?" Subaru: "Because I've been touched by your trembling soul." .hack//Sign, episode 24, Net Slum It is also at this point when Tsukasa is told Morganna's plan by a highly skilled hacker called Helba. Morganna conceived the plan to link Aura to a character who could corrupt her with negative emotional data, placing her in a state where she would never awaken. The chosen character was Tsukasa, as his mind was filled with distressful memories of his real life. Helba also suggests that when Aura is able to awaken, "the Key of the Twilight will take form".Bear: "When Tsukasa is able to log out, then Aura will awaken." Helba: "I believe so. And at that moment, the Key of the Twilight will take form." .hack//Sign, episode 24, Net Slum. The story reaches the climax, when Tsukasa confronts Morganna. He declares that he is no longer afraid of her or of reality, and will log out because there is someone he wants to see.Morganna: "If you obey, I do not need to exercise my power. Do not make me use my power. You know how truly powerful I am!" Tsukasa: "I'm no longer afraid of you or my father! There is someone that I want to see [close-up of Subaru's face]. So I'm going to return, return to the place where I belong!" .hack//Sign, episode 26, Return. This statement triggers Aura's awakening, allowing Tsukasa to log out. The last scenes feature an emotional encounter between Tsukasa's real-life self, finally shown to be a girl, and the real-life player behind Subaru. 

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Jake Roedel and Jack Bull Chiles are friends in Missouri when the American Civil War breaks out. During the mayhem, Chiles' father is murdered by Kansas pro-Union Jayhawkers. The two men join the First Missouri Irregulars (Bushwhackers) under Black John Ambrose, an informal unit loyal to pro-Confederacy units of Missouri in 1861. They later meet George Clyde and his slave Daniel Holt, who is serving in the Irregulars as Clyde's additional fighter. Having been trained in fire arms, and proven a good shot who is cool in combat, Holt is known as a good Yankee killer. The Bushwhackers battle Jayhawkers using guerrilla warfare tactics while trying to evade capture. During their travels, Jake is notified that his father, a German immigrant, has been murdered by Alf Bowden, a Unionist whose life Jake spared. The men manage to hide out in a coarsely-built shelter on the property of a pro- Confederacy family, the Evanses. A young widow in the household, Sue Lee Shelley, becomes romantically involved with Chiles. During a skirmish, Chiles is severely wounded. Jack, Daniel, and Sue Lee amputate his arm, but he dies of gangrene. After Chiles' death, Roedel escorts Shelley to a refuge dwelling where another pro-Confederate kindred, the Brown family, reside. Following the collapse and destruction of a makeshift prison holding the female relatives of guerrillas, a complementary clan of Bushwhackers led by William Quantrill plot a revenge attack against the Union and raid Lawrence, Kansas. After the Bushwhacker's have overrun and killed the Union troops on the edge of town, they enter Lawrence, and commence to kill everyone they deem a Jayhawker, Federal, or supportive of them. Roedel and Holt do not engage in killing of civilians, and enter an establishment to eat. Fellow Bushwhacker Pitt Mackeson, one who has developed a predilection for killing, enters the establishment and tries to give an order to Roedel to bring out the family who own the place, presumably to be executed in the street. Mackeson had steadily grown jealous of Roedel who was viewed as intelligent by the commander of the group, and a German American, who was born in Germany but raised by his immigrant father in Missouri. He suffers from sporadic anti-German suspicion from some other Southerners, because the German population in the state is largely sympathetic to the Union. When Mackeson threatens Roedel with violence, Roedel draws his pistol and points it in Mackeson's face and dares him to carry out his threat. Mackeson backs down. Later, Union cavalry are on the trail of Quantrill's band, and they turn to attack. The Bushwackers draw the Union cavalry into a woodline and dismount into lines to deliver volley fire into the Union cavalry, in subsequent lines, as they retreat. In an episode of more hostility, Mackeson purposely shoots Roedel in the leg during the action. Holt is also hit in the side in the battle. His master tries to pull Holt away from the danger, and then is himself hit in the throat. Holt tries to do stem the bleeding, but his master dies in his arms, and Roedel pulls Holt away to mount horses and escape the Union cavalry. Once clear of the Union cavalry, Roedel and Holt make their way to Brown farm to have their wounds treated. The Brown family takes the two in, and they recuperate for a time. Both Roedel and Holt reflect on their futures. Roedel is less sure he will return to fight for the Confederate Cause, starting to think the war is going against the South. Holt realizing he has no one left without his master, the only person he cared for, begins to realize he is, however, free for the first time in his life, and begins to comprehend he faces life of his own choices. He confides in Roedel that he knew his mother was a slave who had been sold and taken to Texas, and was now the only person left of family he had. Meanwhile, Shelley gives birth to Chiles's daughter. Holt and Roedel, both wounded, recover at the same residence that took in Shelley occupied by the Brown folk. The Browns, who mistakenly suppose Roedel is the child's father, pressure Roedel to marry her, which he is reluctant to do. However, after spending time with Shelley and the child, Roedel begins to have feelings for both of them. At the same time, Anderson and many other Bushwhackers have been killed, taken prisoner or otherwise rendered inactive. Pitt Mackeson has gathered some survivors into a gang which no longer fights the Yankees, but instead robs, murders and plunders Unionists and Southerners alike. Word comes from one of Roedel's compatriots that Mackeson and his gang are headed South and plan on visiting Roedel soon. One day Mr. Brown takes Holt to town and returns with a reverend and Roedel, after realizing he does love Shelley and she him, marries her in an abrupt wedding. Roedel's feelings toward Shelley are further deepened by a tender wedding night together. Later, proclaiming himself finished with war, Roedel gives up being a Bushwhacker and takes his new family to California. On the way, they meet Mackeson and the last of his men, Turner, who is ragged and injured, the both of them on the run. They report Black John and Quantrill are both dead and agree with Roedel the war is lost. Mackeson tells them of his plan to ride into Newport despite the fact the town is full of Federal soldiers and certain death awaits him and Turner. Mackeson's strange manner causes Roedel and Holt to hold guns on him and Turner, but the two ride off without violence. Holt rides with Roedel and his family toward California, until their roads part, and then Daniel tells Jake farewell, while Shelley and the baby sleep. Holt leaves for Texas, a free man, to find his long lost mother. 

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As the continuation of Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam, this series once again follows the story of the Anti Earth Union Group (AEUG) battleship Argama after Mobile Suit Zeta Gundams final episode. To fight off the Axis Zeon, now called the Neo Zeon, Captain Bright Noa recruits a group of teenage junk collectors led by the loudmouthed but powerful Newtype Judau Ashta to pilot the Argamas mobile suits. Now sporting a line-up of the behemoth ZZ Gundam and the returning Zeta Gundam, Gundam Mk-II and the Hyaku Shiki, the group is nicknamed the Gundam Team. As such, this became the first of a number of Gundam series where a team of Gundam mobile suits fight alongside each other regularly. The climax takes place at Side 3 in the Battle of Axis. Out of the major Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam characters, Captain Bright Noa and Axis leader Haman Karn are featured prominently in Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ; Hayato Kobayashi, Kamille Bidan, Fa Yuiry, Wong Lee, Yazan Gable, Mineva Lao Zabi, and the children Shinta and Qum are featured in various episodes as well; Sayla Mass, who had appeared in the first series but had no speaking role in Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam, also appeared in several episodes of Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ; Char Aznable's planned appearance was canceled when Tomino was given the go-ahead to do the Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack movie. Yoshiyuki Tomino's original plan for the show which involved Char's return was never revealed, nor does Tomino himself remember it. Also, aside from the openings and story recap/preview episode, Amuro Ray does not make an appearance in the series either. 

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Phil Potter (Burt Reynolds) splits with his wife, Jessica (Candice Bergen). She wants to be a singer/songwriter and has been having an affair. Phil moves from New York to Boston, where his brother Mickey (Charles Durning) and his sister-in-law Marva (Frances Sternhagen) live. Against his wishes, they set up him with a blind date, Marilyn Holmberg (Jill Clayburgh), a nursery-school teacher working on her master's degree. He begins a new life. Phil takes a part-time teaching job and attends a divorced-men workshop in a church basement, meeting lonely men like Paul and Larry whose situations are similar to his. Marilyn feels it's too soon following his breakup for Phil to begin a new relationship. He goes on a date with her friend Marie, a single mom who literally throws herself at him. At a family Thanksgiving dinner, a phone call from Jessica comes at an inopportune time. Marilyn overhears him telling Jessie that he is dining with his family and "their friend." Marilyn's feelings are hurt and wants to end the relationship. He confronts Marilyn at a School Carnival, where she is staffing a "Dunk the Teacher" dunk tank, and after dunking her several times, Phil asks her to "define" their relationship. Finally, Marilyn agrees when Phil invites her to move in with him. Soon after they move in together, Jessica unexpectedly turns up at his apartment. She looks fabulous and has become a great success as a songwriter, although she is a decidedly off-key singer. Phil moves back to New York to be with Jessica again. But the more he is with her, the more he misses Marilyn. He returns to Boston only to find she is now dating a basketball player. Phil does everything he can, even disrupting a Boston Celtics practice, in an attempt to win her back. 

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In late 1969, Mary Rose Foster is a famous rock and roll diva known as "The Rose." In spite of her success, her personal life is lonely and exhausting. She is exploited and overworked by her gruff, greedy manager and promoter Rudge Campbell. Though forthright and brassy, Rose is an insecure alcoholic and former drug user who seems to crave approval in her life. As such, she is determined to return to her Florida hometown, now as a superstar, and perform for the people from her past. After a performance in Texas, Rose has the opportunity to meet country music star Billy Ray, whom she idolizes and whose songs she often covers in live shows. Billy Ray cruelly demands that she never perform his music again, and rudely dismisses her. After discovering that Rudge arranged the meeting because he wants to sign Billy Ray to his label, Rose defiantly flees with a limousine driver named Huston Dyer. The two take a cross-country trip to New York City, where Rose is scheduled to complete recording sessions, and begin a whirlwind romance. Rudge assumes that Huston is just another hanger-on, but Rose feels she has finally met her true love. Huston eventually admits to her that he is actually an AWOL sergeant from the Army, and she tells him of her past in Florida. The couple's relationship grows turbulent amidst Rose's reckless lifestyle and constant touring. In Memphis, Rose is met by Sarah, a former lover of hers. When Huston walks in on the two women kissing, he and Rose get into a violent fight, after which Huston flees. Determined to reunite with Huston, Rose searches for him in a red light district of Memphis with PFC Mal, a military member whom she met in Texas. She subsequently appoints Mal as her security escort, and the two travel to Rose's hometown of Jacksonville, where Rudge has booked her a hometown reunion show. Upon arriving, Rose shows Mal her childhood home, her high school, and other local landmarks from her childhood. Arriving at the stadium for afternoon rehearsals for her concert, Rose repeats her intention to take a one-year break from performing, leading Rudge to tell her she will be in breach of contract. Rudge proceeds to fire her, though unbeknownst to Rose, this is only a ploy to ensure that she performs the show. A distraught Rose is met by Huston, who has traveled to Jacksonville to reunite with her. Believing her concert is cancelled, Rose decides to run away and start a new life with Huston. That night, she takes Huston on a tour of local bars and clubs she used to frequent prior to becoming famous, recklessly drinking and indulging in barbiturates and heroin. At one bar, Huston becomes jealous when a male patron harasses Rose as she performs, and begins a fight. After, Rudge reaches Rose on her car phone and convinces her to return for the concert. She acquiesces, and her decision to appease Rudge causes Huston to give up on the relationship and leave town. Later that night, after performing the opening song of her long-awaited homecoming concert, Rose collapses onstage and dies of an overdose. 

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Judy Benjamin (Goldie Hawn), a 28-year-old Jewish woman from a sheltered wealthy upbringing whose lifelong dream is to "marry a professional man," joins the U.S. Army after Yale Goodman, her new husband (Albert Brooks), dies on their wedding night during sex. Adrift, Benjamin tells her story on a radio call-in show and meets an Army recruiter, SFC James Ballard (Harry Dean Stanton), who leads her to believe military life will provide the "family" she seeks. He also tells her that the service is glamorous, comparing it to a spa vacation. She has a rude awakening upon arriving at basic training. Judy wants to quit almost immediately, and is astonished to learn that she cannot, contrary to the assertions of her recruiting sergeant. Army regulations and the continuing disapproval of both Captain Doreen Lewis (Eileen Brennan) and SFC L. C. Ross (Hal Williams), her drill sergeant, frustrate her, but when Judy's parents (Sam Wanamaker and Barbara Barrie) arrive at Fort Biloxi to take her home, she decides to stay and finish basic training, which she does with distinction after a wargames exercise where her squad exposes an affair between a member of her training platoon and an officer from another company (with whom Lewis had also been having an affair), and take the leaders of both sides hostage. Upon completion of basic training, Judy meets Henri Tremont (Armand Assante), a French doctor, who is in Biloxi for a medical conference. They separate after a brief romance; Henri returns to Paris, and Judy enters training for the Thornbirds, an elite paratrooper unit. She quickly finds that she was chosen for paratrooper training because the unit's commander finds her attractive; after the other trainees have taken their parachute jump he attempts to sexually assault her on the plane. When she refuses to comply, he attempts to have her transferred as far away from Biloxi as soon as possible. Rather than accept what she sees as an undesirable post in Greenland or Guam, she negotiates an assignment to SHAPE in Belgium, and meets up with Henri again on a visit to Paris. He proposes marriage and she accepts, but when Captain Lewis discovers that Tremont is a communist, Judy is forced to choose either her Army career or love. After she chooses Henri and gets engaged, Judy discovers Henri's controlling side. He tries to "remake" her, and also insists she sign a prenuptial agreement (in French) to protect his family home held for centuries. Then, when she finds out Henri is still in love with his ex- girlfriend Clare and has cheated on her with their maid, she realizes that she is capable of doing whatever she wants and that she does not need Henri in her life. In the final scene, just as Judy is about to get married again, she walks out on Henri at the altar. 

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In the South Bronx, Jeri Dawn is heading home with groceries. Inside the lobby of her apartment building, she passes a man whose dress and appearance are out of place. The woman quickly boards the elevator. She is met in her apartment by her husband Jack Dawn, an accountant for a New York City mob family. There is a contract on Jack and his family, as he has been acting as an informant for the FBI. Suddenly, the family's neighbor, Gloria Swenson, rings their doorbell, asking to borrow some coffee. Jeri tells Gloria of the impending hit and implores Gloria to protect the children. Gloria, a former mobster's girlfriend, tells Jeri that she doesn't like kids but begrudgingly agrees. The Dawns' daughter Joan refuses to leave and locks herself in the bathroom, so Gloria takes only their young son Phil to her apartment – narrowly missing the hit squad. After hearing loud shotgun blasts from the Dawns' apartment, a visibly shaken Gloria decides that she and Phil must go into hiding. She quickly packs a bag, grabs her cat, and leaves the building with Phil, just as a police SWAT team are entering with heavy weapons. Meanwhile, a crowd of onlookers and news reporters has gathered in front of the building, and a cameraman captures a picture of Gloria leaving the building with Phil. Gloria and Phil take a cab into Manhattan, where they hide out in an empty apartment belonging to a friend of hers. While Phil sleeps, Gloria has the TV on and hears a news report say that there was a mob hit in the South Bronx, and that the name of the suspected abductor is Gloria Swenson. The next morning, Gloria and Phil sneak out of the apartment just as a group of gangsters close in on them. The gangsters are old friends of Gloria's, and confront her on the sidewalk outside, exhorting her to give up Phil and the ledger. In desperation, Gloria empties her revolver at the car of five gangsters, which takes off and flips over. Gloria realizes both her fate and Phil's are now intertwined, and that they will have to leave New York to survive. Gloria goes to the bank to empty her safe deposit box, and the two settle for the night at a flophouse. She confronts another group of gangsters at a restaurant; she asks for immunity in exchange for the ledger. "Only Mr. Tanzinni can agree to that," says one of the goons, so she takes some of their guns and flees. The next day, Gloria tells Phil that she plans to send him away to a boarding school. Offended by her intentions, Phil claims he is an independent grown man who can manage alone. Gloria decides to abandon him, and have a drink. She is soon filled with guilt and rushes back to look for him; however, he has been captured by some wise-guys. Gloria rescues him, killing one thug in the process, and fleeing from two other thugs via a taxi and the subway, where several by-standers help her escape from the two mobsters. The two eventually make it to a hotel room, where Gloria laments the mob's strength and ubiquitous presence, explaining to Phil that she was once the mistress of Tanzinni himself. She meets with Tanzinni, relinquishes the ledger, and then flees, killing one gangster as another shoots down upon her elevator car. Phil waits several hours, then flees to Pittsburgh via rail. At a cemetery, Phil and Gloria reunite. 

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Actress Georgia Hines is released from alcohol rehab and returns to her Manhattan apartment and her supportive friends: Jimmy, a gay unemployed actor, and Toby, a sophisticated socialite. She tells them she will maintain her sobriety and slowly ease back into theatre work. Soon after, Georgia's teenaged daughter Polly, who has been living with her father and her new stepmother, asks if she could move in with her mother. Georgia agrees, although not confident that she is ready. Georgia receives a phonecall from her ex-lover, writer David Lowe, who asks if they can meet. With a renewed sense of confidence, she strongly refuses and hangs up. Polly discusses her personal suffering due to Georgia's alcoholism, foremost not being allowed to grow up with her mother. Georgia's feels more confidence, even calling David to apologize and agreeing to meet him for dinner. At dinner, David presents his new script, based on their turbulent, alcohol-filled relationship. He wants Georgia to play the lead/herself. Furious that David brought her there for business, Georgia makes a scene. He calmly asks her to reconsider and she finally laughs, and takes the script home. The reunion between Georgia and Polly is turning out to be a success. They go shopping together, flirt with college-aged boys who mistake them for sisters, then happily recount their adventure to Jimmy. They surprise him with a musical number Polly's been working on for a school show. In the middle of their performance, Georgia abruptly stops to take a call from David, leaving Jimmy and Polly to sit in silence. Georgia shines in rehearsals. When she Georgia confuses art with life during a scene and loses her composure, David consoles her and tells her that she is the only one who can do this part, tenderly kissing her on the cheek as he exits. Georgia arrives at a restaurant, happily late from rehearsals, to find Toby in a foul mood. Georgia continues to talk about the play despite Toby revealing that her marriage might be in trouble. Jimmy bounces in with great news that he finally has been given a part in a play. Georgia congratulates him while Toby looks on in silence. At rehearsals, Georgia brings David a gift-wrapped present. David is taken aback, then introduces Georgia to his new girlfriend. Georgia finally understands that David's affections towards her were only as a friend. Just then, a disconsolate Georgia receives a phone call from Jimmy, learning that Toby's husband has just asked for a divorce. Devastated for their friend, they agree to meet at Toby's that evening. Georgia is greeted at the door by an impeccably dressed Toby. Georgia keeps refilling Toby's champagne glass while Toby reminisces about life as an enviable college beauty, an untalented actress, and then a perfect wife. Toby's composure crumbles, and when she excuses herself to retouch her makeup, Georgia answers the door to a shaking Jimmy. He immediately starts downing champagne and reveals that he was just fired from his play, three nights before the opening, after having invited all his family and friends. Georgia retreats to the kitchen and proceeds to drink multiple glasses of champagne. She returns to the room tipsy and tries to rally her friends, instead shocking them when they realize she has started drinking again. Polly, unaware of events, arrives at Toby's with her new boyfriend. The three friends form a plan to conceal their problems from Polly, but Georgia, now very drunk, has an over-the-top reaction to Polly and her date. Polly realizes that her mother has relapsed, and that Toby and Jimmy are back to covering up for her. She scolds her mother for her insensitive attitude towards everyone around her, then storms out with her boyfriend. Jimmy gets Georgia home, where she insists that Jimmy can trust her to be by herself. After he leaves, Georgia goes out to buy cigarettes at a neighborhood bar, but then sits down to start drinking and strikes up a flirty conversation with a stranger. When Georgia leaves, the stranger follows and violently drags her into a darkened alley where he beats her up. A battered and bleeding Georgia makes it to Toby's, but begs her not to call the police. While Toby tends to Georgia's wounded face, Georgia continues to drink. When Toby tries to make her see how self-destructive she has become, Georgia lashes out and mocks her. A furious Toby finally expresses that she's had it covering for Georgia, telling her to do everyone a favor and stop being such an “astronomical pain in the ass.” The two old friends share a tender laugh and hug, and they walk back inside. The next morning, Georgia admits to Polly that she isn't ready to handle the responsibilities of caring for another person. Polly feels rejected, again, by her mother's decision. After Polly packs and moves out, Georgia starts to accept Jimmy's consoling when she suddenly realizes that she uses her circle of friends to enable her behavior. The film ends with Georgia meeting Polly and Polly's father for lunch. 

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The Cobb at Lyme Regis, near where Smithson and Ernestina first encounter Sarah. Set in the mid-nineteenth century, the narrator identifies the novel's protagonist as Sarah Woodruff, the Woman of the title, also known as "Tragedy" and as "The French Lieutenant's Whore". She lives in the coastal town of Lyme Regis as a disgraced woman, supposedly abandoned by a French ship's officer named Varguennes who had returned to France and married. Employed as a servant in the household of the very pious Mrs. Poulteney, she spends some of her limited free time on The Cobb, a stone jetty where she stares out to sea. One day, Charles Smithson, an orphaned gentleman, and Ernestina Freeman, his fiancée and a daughter of a wealthy tradesman, see Sarah walking along the cliffside. Ernestina tells Charles something of Sarah's story, and he becomes curious about her. Though continuing to court Ernestina, Charles has several more encounters with Sarah, meeting her clandestinely three times. During these meetings, Sarah tells Charles of her history, and asks for his emotional and social support. During the same period, he learns of the possible loss of place as heir to his elderly uncle, who has become engaged to a woman young enough to bear a child. Meanwhile, Charles's servant Sam falls in love with Mary, the maid of Ernestina's aunt. In fact, Charles has fallen in love with Sarah and advises her to leave Lyme for Exeter. Returning from a journey to warn Ernestina's father about his uncertain inheritance, Charles stops in Exeter as if to visit Sarah. From there, the narrator, who intervenes throughout the novel and later becomes a character in it, offers three different ways in which the novel could end: * First ending: Charles does not visit Sarah, but immediately returns to Lyme to reaffirm his love for Ernestina. They marry, though the marriage never becomes particularly happy, and Charles enters trade under Ernestina's father, Mr. Freeman. The narrator pointedly notes the lack of knowledge about Sarah's fate. Charles tells Ernestina about an encounter which he implies is with the "French Lieutenant's Whore", but elides the sordid details, and the matter is ended. The narrator dismisses this ending as a daydream by Charles, before the alternative events of the subsequent meeting with Ernestina are described. Critic Michelle Phillips Buchberger describes this first ending as "a semblance of verisimilitude in the traditional 'happy ending'" found in actual Victorian novels.Buchberger 149. Before the second and third endings, the narrator appears as a character sharing a railway compartment with Charles. He tosses a coin to determine the order in which he will portray the other two possible endings, emphasising their equal plausibility. They are as follows: * Second ending: Charles and Sarah have a rash sexual encounter in which Charles realises that Sarah was a virgin. Reflecting on his emotions during this, Charles ends his engagement to Ernestina, and proposes to Sarah through a letter. Charles's servant Sam fails to deliver the letter and, after Charles breaks his engagement, Ernestina's father disgraces him. His uncle marries and his wife bears an heir, ensuring the loss of the expected inheritance. To escape the social suicide and depression caused by his broken engagement, Charles goes abroad to Europe and America. Ignorant of Charles' proposal, Sarah flees to London without telling her lover. During Charles' trips abroad, his lawyer searches for Sarah, finding her two years later living in the Chelsea house of the painter and poet Dante Gabriel Rossetti, where she enjoys an artistic, creative life. Sarah shows Charles the child of their affair, leaving him in hope that the three may be reunited. * Third ending: The narrator re-appears outside the house at 16 Cheyne Walk and turns back his pocket watch by fifteen minutes. Events are the same as in the second-ending version until Charles meets Sarah, when their reunion is sour. The new ending does not make clear the parentage of the child and Sarah expresses no interest in reviving the relationship. Charles leaves the house, intending to return to the United States, wondering whether Sarah is a manipulative, lying woman who exploited him. 

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During the Battle of France in June 1940, RAF pilots evacuate a small airfield in advance of the German Blitzkrieg. The pilots, along with British and French military, leave just as German aircraft arrive and execute a heavy strafing attack. RAF Air Chief Marshal Hugh Dowding (Laurence Olivier), realising that an imminent invasion of Great Britain will require every available aircraft and airman to counter it, stops additional aircraft being deployed to France so that they are available to defend Britain. In the next dramatic scene, French civilians watch in grim despair as a convoy of German troops marches into France and takes control. At the deserted beaches of Dunkirk, the BBC reports British Prime Minister Winston Churchill's declaration that "what General Weygand called the 'Battle of France' is over, the Battle of Britain is about to begin". Luftwaffe Inspector-General Field Marshal Milch arrives to inspect a large German airfield in captured France. Hundreds of Heinkel He 111 bomber aircraft are stationed under Luftwaffe General Kesselring's command. Luftwaffe commanders are stunned when the Führer informs them that the British are not their "natural enemy" and delays their attack while attempting a diplomatic settlement. In neutral Switzerland, the German ambassador, Baron von Richter (Curd Jürgens) officially proposes new peace terms to his British counterpart, Sir David Kelly (Ralph Richardson), stating that continuing to fight the "masters" of Europe is hopeless. Kelly's brave retort, "Don't threaten or dictate to us until you're marching up Whitehall ... and even then we won't listen", is followed by a private comment to his wife that von Richter is probably correct. In England, commanders celebrate their good fortune, using the delay to build up their strength and continually train their pilots and ground controllers. The wait finally ends when Luftwaffe pilots receive orders to move to the front, where troops are preparing for a sea-borne invasion. The campaign begins with the Luftwaffe launching an early morning assault on "Eagle Day". The plan is to destroy the RAF on the ground before they have time to launch their Spitfire and Hurricane fighters. Eagle Day proves highly successful, with attacks on British radar installations by Stuka dive bombers. Two radar stations are put out of action and a number of British airfields are damaged or destroyed but British losses are relatively light. A grueling battle of attrition ensues, with the RAF airfields under repeated attack while inflicting heavy, but non-critical, damage on the attacking forces. Adding to the RAF's problems is a battle between the commanding officers of 11 Group, Keith Park (Trevor Howard), and 12 Group, Trafford Leigh-Mallory (Patrick Wymark). 12 Group is tasked with protecting 11 Group's airfields while 11 Group meets the enemy, but in raid after raid 12 Group aircraft are nowhere to be seen. Called to meet Dowding, Leigh-Mallory explains that the "Big Wing" tactic takes time for form up, while Park complains that the tactic simply is not working. Dowding ends the debate noting a critical shortage of pilots, wearily remarking, "We're fighting for survival, and losing." The turning point occurs when a squadron of German bombers becomes lost in bad weather at night and drops bombs on London. In retaliation, the RAF attacks Berlin. Though the damage is negligible, an enraged Adolf Hitler publicly orders London to be razed. Hermann Göring (Hein Riess) arrives in France to personally command the attack, confident that the end of the battle nears. Their first attack skirts the RAF, who are still defending their airfields to the south, and they bomb unopposed. Night time attacks follow and London burns. One of the film's most poignant scenes takes place during the Blitz. Non-commissioned fighter pilot Andy Moore (Ian McShane) comes home on leave and is furious to discover that his family have returned to London from their place of evacuation. Meeting them in a shelter during a raid, he gives his children presents of carved model aeroplanes, and tells his wife she must return them to the country at once. As they argue, an ARP warden arrives with news of a family trapped in a burning house. Andy goes to help, but returns later to find the shelter destroyed by a bomb and his family dead. Meanwhile, to supplement Commonwealth forces, the RAF has been forming units of foreign pilots who have escaped German-occupied countries; the main difficulty is their lack of English-language skills. While on a training flight, a Free Polish squadron accidentally runs into an unescorted flight of German bombers. Ignoring the commands of their British training officer, they peel off one by one and shoot down several of the bombers with unorthodox aggressive tactics. Park rewards them by elevating them to operational status, leading Dowding to do the same for the Canadian and Czech squadrons as well. While discussing the day's events, Park and Dowding examine the German switch to London. Given a respite, Park notes that he will be able to repair his airfields and bring his squadrons back to full strength. Dowding adds that 12 Group units north of London are now all within range, while enemy fighters are at the extreme edge of their own range. He concludes that "turning on London could be the German's biggest blunder." The next German daytime raid is met by a massive response; watching his formations build up in 11 Group's operations room, Wing Commander Willoughby (Robert Flemyng) wryly states "this should give them something to think about." RAF fighters arranged into large groups, attack en masse, overwhelming the German raids. Luftwaffe losses are now critical and Göring is incensed, ordering his fighters remain with the bombers, an order the pilots hate because it robs them of the mobility required to keep the British squadrons off the German bombers. Losses continue to mount on both sides. The climactic air battle of 15 September 1940 arrives, with Winston Churchill in attendance at 11 Group's operations room. In the underground bunker, British ground control personnel order every squadron into the air to meet the massive attack. Intense combat in the sky over London follows, with both sides taking heavy losses. The outcome is so confused that Dowding refuses to comment on the events. The next day the RAF anxiously await a raid that never comes. Likewise the Luftwaffe is disheartened by heavy losses and also await orders that never come to resume raiding. Two German anti-aircraft gunners, who had earlier observed a French port teeming with Kriegsmarine vessels and landing barges, now observe a deserted harbour basin. Göring leaves the front, accusing his commanders of betrayal. Dowding looks out over the gardens and up to the sky where the words of Winston Churchill appear onscreen: "Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few." Retrieved: 27 March 2011. 

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Return to Zork is set in the year 1647 GUE, later than any other game in the fictitious history of Zork, including those made after it. Even the relevant backstory postdates all other games, beginning with the Great Diffusion in 1247 GUE. The events of earlier games and even the Great Diffusion, to a degree, have come to be regarded as archaeology or even mythology by this time. The player's character is a sweepstakes winner who wins an all expenses paid holiday to the Valley of the Sparrows, in Zork. Upon arrival, however, the player quickly learns that the entire area has fallen under some dark and sinister influence, becoming decayed and dysfunctional. Whole buildings have mysteriously vanished, murderous vultures infest the land, people have frequent and disturbing nightmares featuring some dark being which refers to itself as Morphius, and many of those who have survived have become reclusive and paranoid. The player must survive countless perils whilst exploring the valley, investigating the causes of the powers that have gripped the land and ultimately putting a stop to them. 

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Lisa feels her status as top student in her class is threatened when a new and exceptionally intelligent student named Allison arrives at Springfield Elementary. Lisa tries to befriend her since they share many traits, but she soon sees that Allison's gifts far exceed hers and begins to doubt herself. At a band audition, the two girls stage a saxophone duel that results in Lisa passing out from overexertion. Allison wins the audition, much to Lisa's horror. Even the kids who used to tease Lisa for being smart start to taunt Allison instead. Wanting to be better friends with Allison, Lisa visits her house but is dismayed at her vast number of awards. She plays a word game with Allison and her father that makes her seem dim-witted. Their rivalry comes to a head during Springfield Elementary's annual diorama competition. Allison constructs a scene from "The Tell-Tale Heart" by Edgar Allan Poe. Lisa exerts great effort to build a better diorama -- a scene from Oliver Twist -- but an electric fan blows it from her bedroom window and destroys it. Bart offers to help Lisa sabotage Allison's entry so she can win the contest. He distracts the teachers and other students to allow Lisa to switch Allison's diorama with one featuring a cow's heart. When Principal Skinner discovers the cow's heart diorama, he humiliates Allison in front of the students and faculty. Overcome by guilt, Lisa retrieves Allison's real diorama from its hiding place under the floor. Principal Skinner, unimpressed by both Allison and Lisa's entries, declares Ralph's collection of Star Wars figurines the winner. Lisa apologizes to Allison for sabotaging the contest. They become friends, picking up Ralph after he accidentally trips and breaks his action figures. In the subplot, Homer steals hundreds of pounds of sugar he finds at the site of Moleman's truck accident. Homer hatches a scheme to get rich by selling the sugar door-to-door. He keeps the sugar piled in his back yard, where he obsessively guards it from thieves. Soon the sugar attracts bees from a local apiary. The beekeepers track the swarm to Homer's yard and offer to buy the bees back for $2,000. Before the transaction is completed, rain falls, dissolving the sugar. The bees fly away, leaving Homer with no money or sugar -- only bee stings. 

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Marketing executive Charlie Hinton and his best friend, Phil Ryerson, find themselves fired when their boss, CEO Jim Fields, shuts down his marketing company's entire health division due to children disliking healthy breakfast cereals made from vegetables over to their co-worker Bruce with a chocolate cereal. While his wife Kim supports the family by returning to work as a lawyer, Charlie, after six weeks of job hunting, is forced to take their young son Ben out of Chapman Academy - an expensive and over-academic preschool headed by the haughty Gwyneth Harridan. Unable to find a more affordable alternative, Charlie eventually decides to open his very own daycare center in his home with the help of Phil, calling it "Daddy Day Care". Although local parents are suspicious of men wanting to work with kids, a few opt to use their service due to it being cheaper and more child-based. Charlie and Phil open their new daycare with a few children, but struggle on their first day due to the kids being prone to causing chaos around the house, and some having personal issues they struggle with. Angered at having competition from the men, Harridan attempts to shut them down by notifying child services of the new daycare. Charlie and Phil soon find themselves rectifying problems pointed out by Dan Kubitz, a director of child services, to ensure their daycare is suitable for children, including hiring their former colleague Marvin as an additional care provider. In time, the men slowly begin to enjoy running Daddy Day Care, which grows in popularity, and bonding with the kids, with Charlie delighted to see Ben enjoying himself. However, Harridan continues to attempt to shut them down after losing children to Daddy Day Care. When Kubitz reveals their house cannot accommodate the number of children they have, Charlie opts to find a new permanent space facility somewhere in the city for the daycare rather than remove a few of the kids to keep it operating. Marvin quickly reveals that he knows of a building that has potential, but the men cannot afford it. The group decide on holding a fundraising children's festival called "Rock for Daddy Day Care", to raise the necessary capital. However, Harridan learns of the event and decides to sabotage it with help from her hesitant assistant Jennifer, causing Daddy Day Care to make no progress in funding. Upon learning that Jim is re-establishing his company's health division and offering Charlie and Phil their old jobs back at double their salaries, and letting them run the whole health division, Harridan offers to take in their children for a cheaper price in exchange for Daddy Day Care shutting down. Charlie and Phil accept the offer, leaving Marvin heartbroken and refusing to join them. The next day, at the marketing meeting for a cereal made from cotton candy, Charlie soon questions his decision, after he realizes the impact Daddy Day Care has had on Ben and the other children, and swiftly quits his job after refusing to support a marketing campaign for another cereal. Convincing Phil to quit and re-open Daddy Day Care, and informing Marvin of their plans, Charlie confronts Harridan during a student orientation with the daycare's children, and reveals to the parents in attendance how little she cares about their children. Revealing how much Daddy Day Care changed and helped their children, the parents decide to let them be taken back by Daddy Day Care. Six months later, the daycare manages to purchase the building it needs to expand, and prospers, with Charlie and Phil becoming a success, Jennifer now working for the center, and Marvin enters a relationship with one of the children's mothers. Phil helps a kid trying to get his toy truck before he accidentally falls on Bruce, much to Charlie's amusement. With Chapman forced out of business, Harridan is forced to work as a crossing guard, and inadvertently causes a traffic jam when a flower she receives from one of her former children causes her to be swarmed by bees. 

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The show has undertones of the original 1950s TV production The Honeymooners, starring Jackie Gleason and Audrey Meadows. Doug (Kevin James) and Carrie Heffernan (Leah Remini) are a working-class couple living at "3121 Aberdeen Street" in Rego Park, Queens, New York,The exterior shots of the Heffernans' house were made in Cliffside Park, New Jersey. See . along with Carrie's father, Arthur Spooner (Jerry Stiller). Doug works for the fictional International Parcel Service (IPS) as a delivery driver, while Carrie works as a secretary in Manhattan, first for a law firm and later for a real estate firm. Their lives are complicated by the demands of Arthur; so much so that they eventually hire Holly, a professional dog walker, to spend time with him as she walks dogs in the park. Doug Heffernan represents the "everyman" with his love of sports, TV, bad food, and, of course, his wife. His constant scheming and plotting through various hilarious situations leave him to constantly explain himself as his follies backfire. Also featured on the show are Doug's friends Deacon Palmer, played by Victor Williams, Spence Olchin (Patton Oswalt), and Richie Iannucci (Larry Romano), as well as Doug's cousin, Danny Heffernan (played by James's real- life brother, Gary Valentine). Deacon's wife Kelly (Merrin Dungey) is Carrie's best friend, having met through the relationship her husband has with Deacon Palmer. Most scenes take place in the Heffernans' home, but other common locations include Doug and Carrie's workplaces, the restaurant "Cooper's" and the residences of friends and family. While locations seen during the theme- song were filmed in areas surrounding New York, the series was filmed in California. The show begins after Doug and Carrie have already married, and how they met is slightly unclear due to continuity issues. In one flashback episode, "Meet By-Product", Doug meets Carrie when he is a bouncer at a nightclub that Carrie attends. However, in another episode, "Road Rayge", Carrie reflects on a song that she says Doug asked her to dance to when they were in junior high school. 

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In Shadow of the Hegemon, all of the Battle School graduates, except Ender, return to Earth in 2197 A.D., where Ender's brother Peter, using his online pseudonym Locke, arranges for Ender to be returned to Earth; but Valentine, under the pseudonym Demosthenes, uses Peter's violent past against him to keep Ender exiled. Shortly after their return, the members of the unit Ender commanded (called his Jeesh, an Arabic word meaning 'army'), with the exception of Bean, are seized as strategists in an upcoming struggle for world dominance, by Achilles de Flandres (ah-SHEEL), who subjects them to solitary confinement. Bean having imprisoned Achilles in the previous novel, Achilles attempts (unsuccessfully) to kill Bean. The Delphikis go into hiding, while Bean joins forces with Sister Carlotta. After he discovers an encoded message sent by Petra confirming that the Russians are Achilles' backers, he works to free her and the others, while helping Peter come to power. When Peter publishes under the 'Locke' pseudonym that Achilles is a murderer, the Battle School graduates are released, excepting Petra, whom Achilles brings to India. From there, he requests plans for an invasion of Burma and then Thailand, for which Indian Battle School graduates, including Sayagi and Virlomi, develop plans for brute-force attacks involving long supply lines. Petra arranges a different plan of stripping India's garrisons along the Indo-Pakistani border, which she expects will never happen, until a meeting with Pakistan's prime minister, in which Achilles encourages the two nations to make peace among themselves and declare war on other neighbors; secretly giving China the opportunity to annihilate the Indian army. Petra finds an ally in Virlomi, who reveals to Bean that Petra is a prisoner, and eventually escapes the military compound to bring rescue. Courtesy of Bean's and Sister Carlotta's assets, "Locke" is nominated publicly for the position of Hegemon, allowing Peter to unmask himself. Meanwhile, Bean enters the Thai military under the patronage of Suriyawong (Suri), a fellow Battle School graduate and (nominal) head of Thailand's planning division, and trains 200 Thai soldiers against India. When the Thai Commander-in-Chief betrays Suriyawong and Bean, Bean hides himself and Suri in the barracks of his troops, and sends word for rescue, while Thailand prepares for war. Sister Carlotta's airplane, en route to Bean's location, is destroyed by a Chinese SAM, and Bean receives an earlier-recorded message, in which she describes the relationship between Anton's Key and Bean's brilliance, but also informs him that his life expectancy will be drastically reduced as a result. Bean and Suriyawong use the troops Bean has trained to halt Indian supply lines. While striking a bridge, they meet Virlomi, who defects to their side. With the aid of Bean's soldiers and Locke's distinguished connections, they move on Hyderabad, where Bean rescues Petra. Furthermore, "Locke" publishes an essay detailing the Chinese betrayal just as it is happening, and on the basis of this prescience (and other miracles over the years) Peter Wiggin is elected Hegemon over the world. 

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In 1949, Ed Crane is a low-key barber in the town of Santa Rosa, California. He is married to Doris, a bookkeeper with a drinking problem, and he works in a barber shop that is owned by his brother-in-law, Frank. A customer named Creighton Tolliver tells Ed that he is a businessman looking for investors to put up $10,000 in a new technology called dry cleaning. Ed decides to collect money by anonymously blackmailing Doris' boss, "Big Dave" Brewster, whom he suspects is having an affair with Doris. Dave embezzles money from his department store to pay the blackmail. However, Dave soon pieces together the scheme, and beats Tolliver until he implicates Ed. Dave confronts Ed at the store and attempts to kill him, but Ed stabs Dave fatally with a cigar knife. After irregularities in the store's books are found, the police arrest Doris for embezzlement and Dave's murder. Ed is persuaded to hire Freddy Riedenschneider, a defense attorney from Sacramento, who arrives and takes up residence in the most expensive hotel in town. He proceeds to live lavishly on Doris' defense fund, which Frank obtained by mortgaging the barber shop. It is all for nothing, because on the morning of the trial Doris hangs herself in her cell. It is later revealed that she was pregnant when she hanged herself, but had not had sex with Ed for many years. Riedenschneider leaves town, and Frank, now deeply in debt, starts drinking heavily. Ed makes regular visits to Rachel "Birdy" Abundas, a friend's teenage daughter, to hear her play the piano. Tormented by loneliness, he imagines helping her start a musical career and becoming her manager. The fantasy is crushed when a music teacher tells him that Birdy has no talent. On the way back from visiting the teacher, Birdy makes a pass at Ed and attempts to perform oral sex on him, causing Ed to lose control of the car and crash. Ed wakes up in a hospital bed and two police officers arrest him for murder. Tolliver's beaten body has been found with Ed's investment contract. The police speculate that Ed coerced Doris into embezzling the investment money, and when Tolliver found out, he was killed. Ed mortgages his house and hires Riedenschneider for his defense. During Riedenschneider's opening statement, Frank attacks Ed, and a mistrial is declared. With no means left for his defense, Ed throws himself on the mercy of the court. The tactic fails, and the judge sentences him to death. While waiting on death row, Ed writes his story to sell to a pulp magazine. Shortly before his execution, Ed sees a UFO outside the jailhouse. As Ed is electrocuted, he reflects on his fate, regretting none of his decisions and hoping to see Doris in the afterlife, both of them free of the mortal world's imperfections. 

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At the time of the Roman Empire a Nubian slave rises up against his captors and leads a rebellion. However his bravery is recognised by a Roman General and he is commissioned as a Roman Centurion. Blackhawk took his name from a Hawk that he adopted and assembled a crack platoon from hardened prisoners and other slaves. As with other Finley-Day war stories the basic plot was borrowed from The Dirty Dozen with Blackhawk's squad being singled out for the hardest missions. In 2000 AD he is taken from his Roman captors by an alien species only to be entered into their own intergalactic gladiatorial events against other alien species. Blackhawk adopts a Wookiee type alien as a sidekick (ironically the Hawk that gave him his name was left behind on earth). Blackhawk manages to escape but ends up stranded on a planet orbiting a black hole. Here a creature called "The SoulSucker" removes Blackhawks soul and he pursues the SoulSucker relentlessly, eventually regaining it shortly before the end of the series run. Eventually, Tharg the Mighty's race were written in, as a robotic "Kwark" created by the "Thargians", and the whole cast were sucked into a black hole. They are later seen in Tharg's desk drawer, full of other dead or discarded characters, where Blackhawk complains how long they have been waiting as Ace Garp is selected for a revival."Whatever Happened to... Ace Garp?" in 2000 AD #451, January 1986 In the 2000 AD Yearbook 1994 it was acknowledged by the editor that this was a poor series, and Alan Grant had written himself into a corner. 

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Nerdy social outcasts Gary Wallace and Wyatt Donnelly are humiliated by senior jocks Ian and Max for swooning over their cheerleader girlfriends Deb and Hilly. Rejected and disappointed at their direction in life and wanting more, Gary convinces the uptight Wyatt that they need a boost of popularity in order to get their crushes away from Ian and Max. Alone for the weekend with Wyatt's parents gone, Gary is inspired by the 1931 classic Frankenstein to create a virtual woman using Wyatt's computer, infusing her with everything they can conceive to make the perfect dream woman. After hooking electrodes to a doll and hacking into a government computer system for more power, a power surge creates Lisa, a beautiful and intelligent woman with unlimited magical powers. Promptly, she conjures up a Cadillac to take the boys to a dive bar in Chicago, using her powers to manipulate people into believing Gary and Wyatt are of age. They return home drunk and happen upon Chet, Wyatt's mean older brother, who extorts money from him to buy his silence. Lisa agrees to keep herself hidden from him, but she realizes that Gary and Wyatt, while extremely sweet, are very uptight and need to unwind. After another humiliating experience at the mall when Max and Ian pour an Icee on Gary and Wyatt in front of a crowd, Lisa tells the bullies about a party at Wyatt's house, of which Wyatt had no prior knowledge, before driving off in a Porsche 928 she conjured for Gary. Despite Wyatt's protests, Lisa insists that the party happen anyway in order to loosen the boys up. She goes to meet Gary's parents, Al and Lucy, who, to Gary's embarrassment, are shocked and dismayed at the things she says and her frank manner. After she pulls a gun on them (later revealed to Gary to be a water pistol), she alters their memories so that Lucy forgets about the conflict; however, Al forgets that they had a son altogether. At the Donnelly house, the party has spun out of control while Gary and Wyatt take refuge in the bathroom, where they resolve to have a good time, despite having embarrassed themselves in front of Deb and Hilly. In Wyatt's bedroom, Ian and Max convince Gary and Wyatt to recreate the events that created Lisa, but it fails. Lisa chides them over their misuse of the magic to impress their tormentors. She also explains that they forgot to connect the doll; thus, with the bare but live electrodes resting on a magazine page showing a Pershing II medium-range ballistic missile, a real missile appears, crashing through the house. Meanwhile, Wyatt's grandparents arrive and confront Lisa about the party, but she freezes them and hides them in a cupboard. Lisa realizes that the boys need a challenge to boost their confidence and has a gang of mutant bikers invade the party, causing chaos and sending the boys running. When the bikers take Deb and Hilly hostage, Wyatt and Gary decide to confront the bikers, causing Deb and Hilly to fall in love with them. The bikers leave, and the next morning, Chet discovers the house in disarray, including a localized snowstorm in his room, and the missile. Lisa tells the boys to escort the girls home while she talks to Chet alone. Gary and Wyatt proclaim their feelings, and both girls reciprocate their feelings to the boys. Returning to the house, the boys discover Chet, now transformed into a talking mutant blob. He apologizes to Wyatt for his behavior. Upstairs, Lisa assures them that Chet will soon return to normal, and, realizing that her purpose is complete, hugs both Gary and Wyatt before de-materializing. As she leaves, the house is magically cleaned and everything transformed back to normal, including Chet. Wyatt's parents return home, completely unaware that anything odd has happened. Later at Gary and Wyatt's high school, Lisa turns up as the new gym teacher, thus continuing her mission to look out for the two boys. 

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